Jordan Paul – “Strange”
Jordan Paul – “Strange” – Single Review
“Can we love each other before we’re out of time?”
This is the question. Forget about “to be or not to be.”
There are a couple things I wanna note down here before I dig into this new single from Jordan Paul. First of all, I wanna give the guy a huge shout-out for being a kickass human being and offering his last record, the Night Moon EP, to any first responders out there, for free. I’m sure those heroes could use a little bit of soul-soothing music at the very least right now – and I ain’t gonna lie to ya, it makes me happy to see an artist like Jordan step up at a time when the people need it most. Hopefully, there are a few people out there that have had the time in all this madness to take in some new tunes and get themselves a copy of the Night Moon EP…Jordan made a solid record last time around with a modest handful of great tunes to listen to. Whether it’s listening to Paul’s music or not, my sincere hope for all those incredible warriors on the front-lines are that they all get the break they so deserve real soon. I’m sure Jordan feels the exact same way…he’s just willing to supply ya with some tunes if you so desire.
Now…while it is ultimately both fair and unfair to compare the past with the present to each other, that’s kinda how things roll when you’ve been listening for a while. You learn what you like, what you connect to the most in an artist or band…like for example, I loved Alice In Chains back in the day…I still love’em now even though I haven’t listened for years really…but for what is widely regarded as a Grunge band by almost everyone out there, it was actually their slower tunes that caught the attention of my ears the most. Like Jar Of Flies is still probably my favorite record from that band…and if you asked most fans, they likely wouldn’t tell ya that an EP like that was the main reason to be an AIC fan, know what I mean? The point is, it’s not always what you’d expect to connect to that can become the strongest part of what your ears respond to. The jury is still out, but this might apply to Jordan Paul.
Because lemme tell ya folks, within this guy, is one heck of a songwriter with beautiful intentions and a wonderfully artistic approach to making music. If you have any doubt, just listen closely to the words you’ll hear throughout his new single “Strange” and you’ll instantly get what I mean – you couldn’t miss it. These words he writes come from the head & the heart and it makes all the difference when we’re listening and contemplating the authenticity of an artist’s connection to their material; you listen to a song like “Strange” and you know without question that these are the thoughts Jordan really thinks. What he’s singing about is important to him – and hopefully it’s important to you too – the sentiment he expresses all throughout “Strange” is built of hope for humanity and the desire for things to be better than they are…to change…to wake up in a world where the priorities we share have somehow shifted to something so much more real. When he sings “Oh think of all that could be,” he’s truly encouraging us all to contemplate & consider these words…because the more we believe them, the more what he’s singing about can all be real. And I’m all for it – sign me up for living in Jordan Paul’s world any time.
Anyhow. I suppose the meat and potatoes of what I’m trying to say is this…
When I first heard Jordan Paul back in 2015 with his single “Archetype X,” I knew right away that I was listening to a sincere musician with the passion, talent, and desire to make this into a full-on career. I knew that what I was hearing wasn’t ordinary, wasn’t typical, wasn’t pretentious…that the ‘X’ in “Archetype X” might as have well have stood for X-factor, because you could hear it radiating from every pore of one seriously incredible song that’s still one of my favorites from any band or artist I’ve latched on to from my days here at sleepingbagstudios to this very day. I would never say that the Night Moon EP was a step backwards…because that’s truly not the case – but like I said earlier, we all like what we like from an artist or band…and that’s just kinda how it is. I’m as human as most of you out there – and no matter how many times I spun through the Night Moon EP in search of that song that would give me that same spine-tingling sensation of knowing I was feeling that same strength of connection I’d heard from him years earlier on that fateful first single I’d experienced from him so long ago…I didn’t find it. I found a trove of really great tunes I’d have no problem playing at any time…I’m always going to have time for Jordan’s music…I’m a genuine fan. The Night Moon EP wasn’t quite “Archetype X” for me is all I’m saying…and it definitely made we wonder which direction he’d take with his music in that next step.
And here we are.
THIS is the Jordan Paul I’ve been searching for – “Strange” is absolutely fantastic and without a doubt the best single I’ve heard from him since first hearing his music back in the day. You name it, this tune has it…the gentle sweetness in the bass-lines, the brilliant & bouncy subtle synths in the background, the warm glow of his vocal harmonies and breathtaking lead-performance…you add in all the elements you hear in the atmosphere from the ambience of the outside world to the spread of the cymbals crashing with such a magnificently delicate sound and the insightful & heartfelt lyricism found within the words & melody throughout “Strange” – and again, I ask of you – what more could you possibly want? Charming, enchanting, serene…Jordan’s working inside of a true utopia of melody & message combined throughout the music & words of “Strange,” and I think he’s just put in another verifiable highlight of his career with this new single – I love everything about this tune.
Find out more about the man behind the music at Jordan Paul’s official homepage here: http://www.jordanpaul.ca
Join the thousands of bands & artists reviewed at sleepingbagstudios by clicking here!
