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in winter..

.. it's like drinking black coffee trying to stay warm and keeping the cold out. the rain falls, the wind blows. some of you even get to see snow.

in autumn..

.. it's a backyard in the suburbs, and hundreds leaves covering the green grass.

in summer..

.. it's a night-time thing. out on the balcony (porch) with some beers and your friends.

in spring..

.. it's the hope for a brighter day.

Sam Shinazzi
Then I Held My Breath

The term 'singer/ songwriter' comes with a stigma attached - the image of the introverted loner, strumming songs in his bedroom on a battered acoustic. It's always a nice surprise, then, when an album comes along with subverts the cliche. Sam Shinazzi's 'Then I Held My Breath' is one such album.

Pop this album in and you'll be greeted with 'Today We Lost A Great One', and all of your fears about bedroom guitar strums will abate. With a muscular band sound built around incessant drums, jangling electric guitars and swirling organs, it's a killer opening track, with Shinazzi's mid-range warble firmly in the middle of proceedings.

Things shift down a key with the Something For Kate-ish chord progression of 'Forge My Signature', whilst 'Girls' showcases a wry sense of wit on Shinazzi's part, its lyrics made up of an alphabetical list of women in his life. While most of the material on offer here is of the downbeat, minor key variety, the album as a whole never slips into being too one note and maudlin. Even the softer songs display a keen knack for full arrangements, with Shinazzi's band always backing him tastefully and subtly.

Shinazzi's third album showcases a collection of well-written songs with strong arrangements and passionate performances. There's a lot of raw talent on display here, which tends to indicate that Shinazzi hasn't quite hit his peak as a writer yet, hopefully it should hit another album or two down the line. However, this is by no means a condemnation; 'Then I Held My Breath' is a fantastic base on which to build something even better.