Categories: REVIEWS

Emmett Hughes – What Will I Do

“What Will I Do” is a new single by Emmett Hughes, a Huntington-based singer-songwriter. It’s the first song from “The Third Degree,” his new full-length album released on March 25th. Soundwise, Hughes embraces many different but complementary music genres to illustrate such rich and luxurious sonic imagery. He combines a singer-songwriter approach with some of the finest properties borrowed from genres like soft rock, indie rock, indie pop, groove, funk, and reggae, but don’t be surprised if you stumble upon some other styles along the way. This comprehensive collection of genres allows him to manipulate his sound as he pleases. You’ll notice how all these additional elements serve as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details, while the artist remains loyal to the primary sonic direction. Therefore, these experimentations with different but complementary styles resulted in a calm, soothing, relaxing, mesmerizing composition that will appeal to even the pickiest listeners.

Photo courtesy of the artist.

As soon as you press play, you’ll notice all the brilliant ideas and exceptional musicianship. Emmett Hughes invested so much time into it, and his effort resulted in a magnificent number that transcends so many music genres at once. His warm, sincere, confident, powerful, and emotive vocal performance guides the listeners and emphasizes all the segments and instrumentations. These outstanding vocal harmonies glide over low, mid, and high notes with ease while simultaneously adding a touch of complexity to an ear-appealing and easy-listening composition. It’s also good to mention that the marvelous female back vocalist enhances the ambiance by emphasizing particular words during the verses and empowering choruses with her otherwordly voice. You’ll also hear how guitars act as a perfect backdrop, supporting Hughes’s vocal maneuvers. The interplay between classic, acoustic, and electric guitars deliver many magnificent chord progressions, harmonies, melodies, themes, accentuations, and other sonic maneuvers, supplying a rich audio landscape with even more intricacies. It’s also nearly mindblowing how delicate keys lurk beneath, but these orchestrations immensely contribute to the overall ambiance.

Emmett Hughes also thought about the rhythm section, so you’ll hear how equally complex, vividly hearable, warm-sounding basslines offer more than necessary heaviness, depth, and clarity while simultaneously binding guitars with drums. The excellent drumming performance dictates groove and pace with tastefully assembled, flawlessly performed, well-accentuated, moderate beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics. Every instrument plays a crucial role in shaping such a rich and luxurious ambiance that will immediately grab your attention and refuse to let go. Emmett Hughes is an exceptional singer-songwriter and musician whose experience, knowledge, skills, and talent shine in every segment of his songs. That’s the case with “What Will I Do,” a catchy, hypnotic, addictive piece of sonic artistry that will immediately convince you to spin the remainder of his latest album. “What Will I Do,” and “The Third Degree” are available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss this indie gem!

Djordje Miladinović

Hi, my name is Djordje and music is my passion. You'll probably find me at the gigs, in a local record store, distro or in front of my PC searching for some quality music to listen to. Do not hesitate to contact me. By becoming a Patron, you're keeping Thoughts Words Action alive. https://www.patreon.com/thoughtswordsaction

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