With bated breath we have waited for Angelina’s new song, which was finally dropped at the midnight of Thursday. Suffice to say that it was a climactic experience and her loyal fans were not disappointed.
A bygone era
The music video ostensibly shot in black and white Super 8 film was designed to transport her audience to a bygone era. The statuesque Angelina in one-piece short skirt, knee stockings and polka dot heels, with her dark locks cascading in luscious tangles over her shoulders and the front-piece of her hair rising in a lofty bouffant, seems to walk straight out of a 1960s poster. The Beverly Hills setting and the 1954 Porsche Speedster add extra authenticity to the retro theme.
Quite different from her recent works
Cue the music and we are immediately taken back to the heydays of Disco by four-to-the-floor drum beats and syncopated bass lines. The vocal profile for this song is quite different from her recent works in which she mesmerized the audience with her dark timbre, round and breathy tone. It features a forward placement with glottal compression that makes her voice twangy and squeaky, which reminds me of her vocal choices in “I’m Still Holding out for You”. Combined with a halting style of phrasing and a great deal of vowel modification, she sounds ruefully haunting in a dance tune, which I didn’t think was possible until now.
On the brink of cracking from surging emotions
Angelina is the Grandmaster of vibrato, in this song she takes it to another level. Her voice quivers whenever she wants to evoke visceral reactions from us. Her vibrato is short and fast and sometimes combined with vocal fry, which sounds as if her voice is on the brink of cracking from surging emotions.
The skill level is off the charts, so is the impact on the audience. She approaches the high notes with restraint, and often slides into falsetto in the end, which is far more soul stirring than belting it out. Her low notes sound amazing as always, reverberating like a cello and sending instant chills through my body.
“I’m trying to pull you closer to me, but it’s just like trying to catch smoke”
Full of vintage vibes
This is a marvellous piece of song writing as well. The tune is simple and catchy, the lyrics thoughtful and pungent – it takes a poet to come up with sentences such as “I’m trying to pull you closer to me, but it’s just like trying to catch smoke” and “If you had a heart, I could make it beat for me.”
The song is full of vintage vibes, but does not sound out of touch with the times. It carries significant emotional weight, but is still easy on the ear. Most importantly, it features Angelina’s vocal performance that is truly out of this world. I feel that this could be the breakout song for her.
“If you had a heart, I could make it beat for me.”
Did I mention that she looks absolutely gorgeous on the title cover? Our barefoot princess has quietly blossomed into a beautiful young woman. The veteran angels who have followed her from the beginning must be tearing up with joy and pride.
Links to all platforms with Love Don’t Let Me Go by Angelina Jordan