While listening to Human Brother’s debut album “Vision Days on the Life Ride”, we may have glimpsed the future of music. Not the future of rock, pop, or electronic, but the convergence of all three. After only a few tracks, it’s clear that when we ask where we’re headed in 2010, Human Brother may have the answer.
William Wordsworth once wrote that “poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings… recollected in tranquility.”
If we assume Wordsworth is right, we have to grant that anyone can be an artist. Obviously, almost everyone has the capacity for emotion and reflection. But in the means of their expression, all are not created equal.
Our society demands equality but prizes individuality. We find ourselves torn between poles of conformity and independence – handcuffed by our own aspirations.
The true artist is he who finds the middle ground and expresses it with clarity.
Enter Human Brother – the stage name of emerging Los Angeles-based artist / songwriter / producer / renaissance man JD Shultz. Human Brother’s debut album, “Vision Days on the Life Ride”, dares to be bold, and succeeds stunningly. To the untrained ear, characterizing Human Brother’s sound would be an exercise in futility. He draws inspiration from so many sources that to lump him into one category seems an affront to his sublime genre-bending effort.
Shultz calls his creation “Hu-Manitronic”. That may, in fact, be the most fitting description, as “Vision Days” so clearly embodies everything that we should be proud to call human. The pain and joy of everyday existence swirl in a watercolor of sound. Guitar elements and chord progressions are often reminiscent of Northern European and South Asian influences, but still cannot fully encompass the breadth of content that “Vision Days” offers. Each song captures a different feel, featuring hybrid elements ranging from 80’s-style synthpop to uptempo electronic to alt-rock.
The album leads off with “Floor on Fire”, a powerful composition replete with electronic influences and thumping bass. Next up is “Behind You Now”, a song filled with longing for simpler days. Batting third is “You Are Everything”, a united celebration of all things human, featuring Turkish violins and resounding African choirs.
“When Will I”, the most hauntingly beautiful track on “Vision Days”, is naked in its sincerity of emotion. He deals in simple truths on a personal level, and we find comfort in communion with his honesty.
Following “When Will I” is “The Lucky Ones”, a song that reflects on what could have been. “Step to the Side” is a light but provocative electronic piece with a message – greed is the wool pulled over our eyes. “Stars Are Ours to Name” is innocent and playful, in the realm of Neil Young or Beck, but it reveals a deeper vulnerability in the artist. “Torture and Grace” rounds out the first ten tracks with a feel that fuses funk, jazz, and rock.
The word for “poet” in Greek literally means “maker” or “creator”. In “Vision Days”, we find a lyrical quality that ascribes directly to the Greeks’ meaning of poet – Shultz is a creator in the truest sense of the term. He derives originality from the fact that his lyrics are completely devoid of affectation.
Anyone can write down his feelings, but few are so gifted with the ability to express them. “Vision Days on the Life Ride” strips away pretense. What’s left? Purity of sense and of action. The distillation of purpose.
Human Brother is a soul laid bare.
To hear the album and learn more about JD, visit www.humanbrother.com, www.jdshultz.com, www.playpenmusic.com
To read our article on JD Shultz and his art donation to the Grammy charity Musicares, click here…
