Graffiti6, 'Colours'
Everyone's talking about the hotness of Jamie Scott, frontman for breakout duo Graffiti6. And sure, the boyish-cut fella could probably get away with slapped-together crap as long as he sang it in that pudding-smooth bluesy tone of his. But thankfully that's not a concern – he sounds as good as he looks. He's British, so there's that. Except what's really at work here is his coat of many "Colours": an intoxicating melting pot of funk, soul, psychedelia and sturdy Maroon 5 pop melodies. Scott and his distractingly fine everything only makes the sultry slow-burn of "This Man," an R&B grinder that reaches a masturbatory climax, that much more erotic. His voice (think Stevie Wonder and Justin Timberlake singing through a medical mask) is a sex toy, but it's also alluring in bunches of ways: charming on the retro "Free," entrancing on the exhilarating "Stare into the Sun" and devastatingly beautiful on "Over You," stripped of anything but some subtle keys and a broken heart. "Calm the Storm" doesn't work with much – a chill-out mix and the title lyric looped throughout – but he taps out every nuance from those three words to captivating effect. The only real misstep is "Lay Me Down," a self-indulgent Kings of Leon wannabe. Otherwise, this debut is this year's benchmark for pop music. Grade: B+
Rumer, 'Seasons of My Soul'
Rumer, the 32-year-old English songstress whose old-soul voice sounds like it came from the same strand of DNA as Karen Carpenter, is getting all kind of kudos. And not just from anyone: Elton John, Carly Simon and Burt Bacharach are all thumbs-up for the vocal extraordinaire, born Sarah Joyce, from Pakistan. High praise is deserved. With a hypnotic, hush-hush elegance that's unheard of these days, Rumer is an anomaly in today's music market (her famous adoring fans aren't exactly spring chickens, after all). Her voice on "Slow," the right word for the song, caresses the dreamy gentleness of simple instrumentation like liquid chocolate. How Sade of her. "Seasons of My Soul," though, is made for the moment and not the mind; it doesn't linger long after its loveliness plays out. And it really is lovely. She finds comfort in "Aretha" – the Queen – when nobody else gets her, and the song is another ear-melty pleasure. "Thankful" is life-affirming, "Am I Forgiven?" strikes up a summery sweetness and "Come to Me High" moves you into a magical trance. That timeless quality extends to the end with a heartfelt cover of "Goodbye Girl." But for Rumer, this isn't the end. It's the beginning of something big. Grade: B
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Darren Hayes, 'Secret Codes and Battleships'
It doesn't take any code-cracking to figure out that half of defunct duo Savage Garden is truly, madly and deeply brokenhearted. Hayes, the gay one, paints his unabashed pop with wallowing sentiments of pain and loss post-breakup, but with minimal SG schmaltz. The beats boom, the synths rave and his soaring melisma is as glorious as ever. "Black Out the Sun," then, is a triple threat, honing his hookiest song in years. Empty and lonely, he's painfully straightforward: "Love doesn't want to hang around." You, however, will.
The Little Willies, 'For the Good Times'
Good times? If Norah Jones throwing a punch on "Fist City" is your idea of such fun, then sure – this is a real romp. Especially compared to Jones' previous output, generally so sleepy it should come with a built-in alarm. With The Little Willies, a country fivesome who also play for the blues and jazz team, there are moments of musical comatose on their second covers disc. "Remember Me" is Jones to the core, but "I Worship You" unearths a toe-tappin' hoedown and her take of "Jolene" does Dolly proud.
