Drawing us in with a descending, iconic organ riff of Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor with added laughter elements, JShell opens Haunted with a sense of nostalgia as we are immersed into his subversive universe. The opus expands with metaphorical, yet thought provoking prose as he delivers the lyrics, “You feel haunted, gets hold of you mind makes your stars unaligned puts your soul in a bind, it’s unwanted…”
We immediately appreciate the themes that JShell covers with his poetic prowess, and how the composition is dynamic as we experience an incredible and anthemic rock-hybrid pre-chorus and chorus, laced with luscious harmonies that further dimensionalize the track.
Speaking on the releases of the single, and his album, In My Head, JShell confesses, “I am excited to share my music with fans of rock music and am humbled by the genius that Steve, Katie, Jake, Scott and the other contributing musicians, vocalists and engineers brought to the project.”
The names he references are his collaborators for the record, including Steve Hackett (former lead guitarist of Genesis and a pioneer of progressive rock), Katie Jacoby (violinist and co-leader of the orchestra for The Who), Jake Cinninger (guitar virtuoso of jam band titans Umphrey’s McGee) and Scott Metzger (also a guitar virtuoso of jam band titans Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, and Wolf).
Every single on the album is set to come with a music video, and we are absolutely mesmerized by the first animated visual for Haunted, which features intricate detailing, awe-inspiring transitions, and brings to life the message of the song through a cohesive and profound film-noir lens.
JShell cites Genesis, The Beatles, The Who, Queen, Journey, Billy Joel, and Iron Maiden as some of his key influences, but there is no doubt that the talented artist is creating a universe of his own. We have added Haunted to our New Music Spotlight playlist, whilst we await future releases from JShell!