When we reviewed his album Dark Star back in April, we gave you the heads up that soon, you too, would be a fan of the versatile L.A. synth-soul musician, Jaymes Young.
And you should stay in the grandstands for this one, because his latest offering is completely on brand; his signature chillstep electronic framework and velvety R&B overtones adding ingenuity to the track “Distraction” – an original work of art c/o electro-cinamatic artist Phaeleh (pronounced “Fella”).
The glowing intro could easily be at home in a space odyssey feature film, cloaking us in starry synth. When the smooth, suave vocals break through the ozone, we’re transcended past the atmosphere of normalcy and into genius outer limits.
One of my favorite things about Jaymes is his pronunciation — nothing is lost in translation. And his slow, steady, powerful delivery just brings the drama. The standout line, “It should’ve been me / sleeping next to you” is the perfect emo-declaration for the onset of colder weather, when we all want a warm body for the winter. But even a song about love lost, wandering thoughts, jealous conclusions and past regrets is still made beautiful by the poetic prowess that is Jaymes Young.
A rainstorm closes out the track, and we think if you had to translate loneliness to music, this is what it would sound like. But then, like most good things do, the song disappears into a vast void and we’re left looking for other distractions.