William Hinson’s music is really smooth and fun. It’s actually kind of hard to find a good comparison for his style, even though you swear you’ve heard it before. Sometimes it’s has a bit of Michael Jackson, other times a bit of a more recent act like Ben Rector. No matter what you hear in it, it’s the kind of music that puts you in a great mood.
This year, Hinson has released two EPs that put together equal a full album. We’ll be focusing on some of the tracks from Elevator Music Vol 2 here, but check out Vol 1 as well as it is quite good as well.
“Why Won’t You Be My Girl” has a lot of glowing pop sounds to it. The lyrics are predictably broken hearted, but they are singable and fun. It’s a great feel good way of being sad about rejection. It feels like an honest expression and that’s what matters.
The second track “16,17,18” is, I think, about the ages of puppy love and total infatuation. I bet just thinking about that age causes you to remember people that you thought you loved and desperately wanted to be with. The passions of those ages burn so hot. This song is about that feeling of flirting and passion.
“Pendulum (feat Claire Hoke)” is a completely different track than the poppy goodness that opens the album. It’s much more experimental, at least in the opening. Once the verse itself starts, it becomes beautifully melodic. I don’t have production notes on the album, but the vocal harmony sounds like it’s layers of Hinson’s own voice. They sound great and help to punctuate the heartfelt lyrics. It’s a cool lyrical concept about the “back and forth” feeling of a relationship. It’s the realest.
The track “Pinkdyesea” is an easy acoustic tune that lets Hinson’s pure songwriting chops show through. With more like a Frank Sinatra crooning style than some of the other songs on the album, it’s a great groove with more of a jazz standard feel. I actually think this might be my favorite on the album, even though it’s not as indicative of Hinson’s overall vibe. Again the lyrics focus on an uncertain (or should we say unstable?) relationship.
The final track is an exceptionally nice piano ballad that show an understanding of pop melody that goes far beyond the average singer songwriter. It’s complex but still melodic, in the way that you feel when you hear an Andrew Lloyd Webber show tune. The dynamics both in tempo and chords are really outstanding. The way Hinson captures his heart with this style puts the spotlight on his very bright future.
In short, we can’t wait to hear what is next from this gifted singer songwriter.
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