Rock
I can sit here and list all of Jim Camacho’s numerous awards, such as the New Times’ "Best Songwriter" and "Best Acoustic Performer”, and tell you about his contributions to film soundtracks films, including the Grammy nominated, “Tom Dowd & the Language of Music,” Paris Hilton’s “Pledge This,” and “Fatboy,” which was nominated at the Sundance Film Festival for “Best Use of Music in a Documentary”, or tell you that his 90’s band, The Goods, released five albums including the rock opera 5 Steps to Getting Signed, which won “Album of the Year” at the Florida Jammy Awards, and how as a solo artist he has released three albums thus far winning the Gold Remi in the Music Video category at the 40th Annual WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival for the video of “Houdini”…but it is just a lot easier to just say “Trust me, get his latest EP, “Is It Me”, right now”.
“Is It Me” has five damn near perfect tunes bristling with pop rock smarts and just a hint of Americana – he’s somewhere in-between Tom Petty and Don Henley. Camacho’s songwriting skills are on par with a seasoned pro, and his vocal instincts are spot on. The EP begins with only a beautifully played piano to complement Camacho’s earnest delivery, but then explodes with the sound of a full band – this title track gives me chills every time. “It’s Over” is a straightforward rocker, not astray from the poppier side of Wilco – take note of this one, fans of ye cowbell. “Debutante” reminds me a lot of a Will Hoge ballad and sits comfortably in the middle of this batch of tunes. Even more than the other tracks, “Debutante” provides Camacho a platform to showcase his vocal dynamics and knack for emotive inflections. “Get Out” starts deceptively – quietly building into a rousing anthem of a chorus. Finally, “Say It Soon” closes the all-too-short affair with another piano-driven piece with thoughtful lyrics. In short, nothing but gold here.
The “Is It Me” EP is available now, and we look forward to a new full-length record this summer on Forward Motion Records/Broken Records.
Jim Camacho on MySpace. Official site.
Check out the video for “Is It Me”
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