“Soul EP” is a three-track debut by Atlanta based singer-songwriter Leland Jacobs. The sound is 90’s alternative rock with a modern flair. It was released on June 25th. The EP is for fans of Foo Fighters, Third Eye Blind, Kings of Leon and the like.
“Soul”
The EP opener is haunting and creepy, with virtuosic RnB technician’s vocals, driving drums, bass and gritty, spiky electric guitars as the backdrop. The mix is full and clean, but resists the urge to become too polished. Despite being straightforward, tight pop-rock, it thankfully sounds more like the Foos than Daughtry. The vocals are jumpy and minor key, mixing in and out of operatic and falsetto. It’s about a girl, specifically the cataclysmic effects that have been had on the narrator by her, the classic fall-back songwriters’ topic, but there is a weird darkness there that leads the emotional response of the song away from straight-up storybook love and more into weird, complicated territory (like when he sings “I can taste the salt and blood of you on my hands.”)
“In my Blood”
A little more midtempo, but still a rocker at its core. Again very cleanly recorded modern rock band sound. The voice is more confident and less creeped out and confused as it is in “Soul.” He’s a rocket headed to the sun, according to the lyrics. The similarity to mainstream rockers of the 1990’s and early 2000’s can’t be ignored, in particular Dave Grohl and Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age. Sonically Jacobs could pass for these guys’ little brother—still a romantic youngster, yet to be hardened into heavy rocking therapy-blasts and willing to pour out sentimentality in his middle ground heavy rock and roll to whatever youthful heartstrings will receive it.
“Crimson & Snow”
The words to this one, another pounding modern-rock-station ballad, (very suitable—as is all the music on “Soul,”—for 105.9, the X, for all you Pittsburghers familiar with the station) are vague broad strokes of deep winter city-walking emotions and again, involve blood, a recurring theme. It’s hard to tell, but I think this one might be about getting hit by a car. In the story of the song he bleeds out onto concrete, once white with snow, now red all over.