“Chaos and the Calm” by James Bay – Album Review

The symbiosis between James Bay and his signature Epiphone Century guitar infuse this album, Chaos and the Calm, with the raw anguish and passion common to all great singer-songwriters. Bay’s first album immediately captivates the listener with his chilling vocals and inventive riffs. Each song has undeniable authenticity, as he belts out the poignant lyrics with notable emotion and longing. The entire, double-sided album feels like a testament to a great love lost, and to the agonizing feeling of heartbreak.

He demonstrates tremendous musical range in both tempo and style, changing from a power ballad imbued with frustration and anger in “Craving” to a heart-wrenching plea for forgiveness in “Let It Go”. Although the latter, along with “Hold Back the River”, have already gained him notoriety in the mainstream media, the true gem of this EP is “Scars”, a mesmerizing song played softly with a single guitar. This song exhibits Bay’s uncanny ability to capture genuine feeling in short, simple riffs. He frequently holds notes slightly too long and stresses others, snapping each fret with depth and unmistakable pain.

The song, written about his former girlfriend who left him in England for the US, captures every pang of loneliness in a beautiful way. Although it is evident throughout the album, “Scars” demonstrates the incredible synergy between Bay and his guitar, as he strums the slow tempo in an intentionally imperfect way. His powerful, soulful voice intertwines with his distinctive playing style to form a truly riveting sound. He is a modern version of Jeff Buckley with a heavy blues influence, successfully merging the tortured artist with consistently melodious songs. Many of the songs on Chaos and The Calm contain the same uncut distress made famous in Buckley’s “Hallelujah” or “Morning Theft”.

This album is pain. It is heartbreak and suffering. It is loneliness. It is the hopeless longing for lost love. It is those desperate moments in emotional limbo between consciousness and pain-relieving slumber where you truly realize that she is gone.

Chaos and The Calm is undoubtedly musical genius, but more importantly, it is refreshingly genuine. In a day and age where music has been hijacked by computers and distorting tuners, James Bay reminds true music lovers that the guitar is still magical. He brings the flowing hair, the fedora, the leather jacket, the tight pants, and the swagger of his classic rock predecessors with the emotion and vulnerability of folk rock and blues. He is brimming with genius and untapped potential, teasing the world of music in his awe-inspiring concerts and acoustic sessions. This album represents the beginning of a promising career for the twenty six year old from rural England; such a blend of talent and self-assured creativity could rock the music industry and revitalize the thoroughbred singer-songwriter.