We take a listen to new single I’ll Be Loving You from Lucinda Bell, and with it we’re transported into the a world gone by of seductive jazz, littered with pop connotations.
I’ll Be Loving You is the first track written for forthcoming album Think Big: Like Me, which Lucinda has been working on for a while now. Lucinda was previously a child prodigy with the harp, with most people thinking this would be the direction she’d go in. But like many a young musician in today’s world, outside musical influences seeped in from left, right and centre, and so began her journey to the multi-talented musician and genre jumping style she has today. The track takes the listener on a journey through her internal world, inviting you to share her thoughts and fears.
As soon as I’ll Be Loving You kicks in, you get that classic Hollywood, smokey atmosphere that’s gentle and sophisticated, suave and sexy. The slowed down ragtime rhythm flows through the gentle guitar against the harp before trumpets appear for the chorus to crank things up a notch. The lyrics too and fro between the happy and sad as the track glides along on a walking bass rhythm and it’s playful jazz-pop stylings, with Lucinda singing her heart out with poetic blues-based lyrics: “Around the corner there’s a girl that’s done her time in feeling blue”. It reminds me of some early Libertines work before they progressed into the punk rock direction – they actually had some beautiful tracks that were in this style, and you can still here some of the melody in their later work.
Lucinda also gets the appeal of Vinyl with this track (which we here at Vinyl Chapters obviously love), cutting the single using an 8 track 50’s recording studio in two live takes…how cool is that? This makes the offering sound much warmer than on digital formats, and fits in perfectly with the genre and styling of the music.
Now to address the elephant in the room… yes, with Lucinda you will notice definite similarities to Amy Winehouse, but these are difficult to escape by anyone creating this type of music. It’s time to let go of Amy and allow her wonderful music style to be used by others. Using this style, Lucinda transports you back to a world gone by, managing to be both sultry and commanding at the same time. She hangs onto words where needed to bring more effect and accentuate a point, but doesn’t over-do this, which is a common problem. The chorus is ridiculously addictive, showing that the singer has a keen ear for a melody, and can spot a hook from a mile away.
I’ll Be Loving You is a testament to following your own direction. Lucinda comes into her own on this track, grabbing the genre by the horns in a way no one has managed to do since Amy Winehouse. It’s infectious, innocent and sweet one minute, then turns everything on its head the next with instinctive rhythms, a catchy chorus and tight production. If this is anything to go by, the new record is going to be fantastic.
Score: 4/5
By Jamie Parmenter
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