AN ILLUSTRATOR based in the deep, verdant landscape of Hampshire by day, James Alexander Bright is also a soothing and sunbathed acoustic soul talent who juggles a design career in watercress country with another life with groovy European arbiters of taste !K7, home to the likes of the mighty Jazzanova.
He’s released a digital EP for that imprint, 2018’s Strange Folk, and is about to see a deluxe issue of his full debut, Headroom, which is due on October 23rd; in the heralding of which he’s just dropped the animated video for the cool blue-eyed soul of “Go” – watch below.
“Go” is, James says, “a reminder about nature and feeling things.” It’s sun-soaked, perfect for a really blissfully lazy spreadeagle on the chalk downs with your loved one.
The animated lyric video guides you through: “When you feel the sun / And it knows your name / And you feel it shine / Glowing heat within.” He needs say no more. This is the excellence and epiphany of such a day. The way he multi-tracks for harmony, that little grain in the timbre of his voice; lovely.
!K7 aren’t the only groove sophisticates to recognise James’s talents. He’s also been working in collaboration with fans Groove Armada, and writes, sings and plays on their first new long-player for a decade, Edge Of The Horizon. Tom Findlay of Groove Armada said: “All the musical styles I love. I’m a big fan”.
Awkwardly, in terms of Hampshire football, Portsmouth chose his track “Tigers Roar” to soundtrack their 2019 Wembley trip; James wears the red and white stripes of eternal rivals Southampton.
He is a Hampshire lad through and through, despite his burgeoning global reputation: “I feel at home in the deep south of England,” he says.
“I’m in the middle of nowhere with lots of green land, fresh air and head space. I feel like the sunshine in the south in the summer months really reflects in my music.”
The deluxe issue of James’s Headroom is due on October 23rd. To keep abreast of this release, stay tuned here at Backseat Mafia and over at James’s website.
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