Culture

Rating: A-

Shamir Bailey is a nineteen-year-old musician from Las Vegas, USA. The Northtown EP is his debut release, and it is definitely a promising one.

The first thing that becomes immediately apparent is Bailey’s voice. It is silky smooth, and seems to sit at quite a unique register. Almost a falsetto, but not quite. Childlike may be a more apt description.

This is combined with an array of almost minimal, lo-fi beats and rough, dirty production. The songs are intrinsically a mixture of soul and pop. One way to describe this record could be a lo-fi Michael Jackson, or a hip-hop Whitney Houston.
The EP spans five songs and sits at around 20 minutes. “If It Wasn’t True,” “I Know It’s A Good Thing” and “Sometimes a Man” are the more upbeat, dance floor fillers, with simple but infectious hooks. “I’ll Never Be Able To Love” is a swooping, heartbreaking ballad, which actually kind of steals the show. The final track, “Lived and Died Alone,” takes a detour and features Bailey alone with just an acoustic guitar covering a Lindi Ortega song.

Overall, the Northtown EP is as solid an EP as any other. It showcases Bailey’s range, promise and really is just a bunch of good songs.