Jasia

With an enigmatic stage presence, Jasia opened his very first live gig in a whirl of smoke and moody lighting. Deep, heavy synths and the voice of a slightly corrupt angel, Jasia was the perfect support act for Brisbane’s Airling. Being previously unknown to me, Jasia immediately drew me in with his unique performance, and I’m beyond excited to see what the future holds for this act. - Mismatch TV

Citing influences that range from Clams Casino to Passion Pit is the one-man-band project, JASIA, that is headed by Josiah Willows, a jack-of-all-trades whose resume includes: classical training as a producer, performances in orchestras, singing, and violin and guitar playing.

“Inverbatim” serves as his proper debut that showcases his vast swathe of influences he’s incurred throughout his life all into one song. From the multi-layered vocal samples, to the orchestral string sections, to the spacey guitar parts and edgy electronic touches, it seems like there’s no way this could come from one man. The truth, as we know, is that “Inverbatim” indeed comes from this one man, albeit, a very talented one.

Josiah Willows currently spends his time between London and Melbourne recording his debut album, and if “Inverbatim” is any indication of what to expect from him, we’d say that we’re in for an absolute treat. - Hilly Dilly

Sounds like: Big Scary, Sigur Ros
What's so good?
Jasia is a Jamaican-born, Australia-based musician who has just released "Safety." It's haunting and beautiful, and the type of song that you really want to listen to a few times over to really appreciate everything going on.


There's so many musical elements going on in the four minute track that it's tricky to describe. Starting with a really low, murmuring bass and a delicate vocal melody, the track is breathtaking from the start. A fluid blend of guitars and synth chords wax and wane as the atmosphere begins to grow. We begin to pick up guitar flicks, eerily ambient strings and subtle drum glitches.


The ambience takes over, to a point where it's almost Sigur Ros-like, in a seamless mix of instrumental darkness and vocal innocence. It continues to flourish, with layer upon layer blooming into something simply stunning.


I couldn't recommend this track highly enough. Jasia is absolutely an artist to keep an eye on. - Indie Shuffle

Jasia is a 23 year old classically trained musician who was born in Jamaica, raised in the US, and now lives in Australia. He recently released the new video for “Safety,” an intriguing & haunting track. The video perfectly captures the mood of the song and was filmed entirely on 16mm black & white film by director Julian Tynan. Watch the video above – it’s one of the most interesting videos released so far this year. - Ground Sounds

Inverbatim, the first single from Melbourne producer JASIA, sounds like a haunted playground. In a good way, though.

JASIA's track swells and fades as its different layers are delicately laid and then removed. The shivering string section is pushed forward by a heavy 808 kick. A subdued guitar line gives some shape to the ghostly melodies of the vocal sample. Heavy subs rattle away underneath it all, giving the whole track some oomph.

The result is an ethereal, melted ice cream, swing-pushing-itself kind of vibe. The track is beautifully put together, and absolutely rewards multiple listens. And really, why wouldn't you pop this one on repeat?

Vibe out - and wonder what a combination Lego and drugs must make - Backyard Opera

I grew up in Michigan and spent a lot of high school driving in the snow at night, thinking about crashing my car.

I’d picture the scene from above and outside, set to whatever song I was listening to at the time, as I ram through the guardrail of a bridge. As you can expect, only the bleakest, most distant song would do. Melbourne based Jasia‘s haunted cavity of a track ‘Safety’ pulls me back to those bleary country roads, young and dark, tunneling with the headlights through the winter void. The scene is shamelessly romantic and so is this track: the perfect song for a heart wrenching movie trailer or a high concept music video. I imagine suburban outsiders all over Australia listening to this as they brood over their steering wheels, hitting back on the track like it delivers morphine. - Dingus

‘Inverbatim’ is completeness; from rich tidal bass to soaring choral highs, and every pleasant strata between.

‘Inverbatim’ is the debut single from Melbourne-based producer JASIA (Josiah Willows). Georgia Hitch played it for the very first time this morning at 7:30 Up For It - but if you weren’t awake to catch it, here it is for you to stream again and again.

The eclectic influences on Josiah’s sound are obvious on first listen and manage to emerge in brilliantly cohesive ways. Restrained beats akin to Clams Casino sit neatly under a beautiful wash of strings, an artefact from his classically trained past and a nod to his admiration for Sigur Rós. The heavily processed and resonant vocal layers spill over the arrangement, bearing resemblance to the crooning falsetto of Passion Pit’s Michael Angelakos.

‘Inverbatim’ is radiant with vintage vibrations. The snare hits cascade into 80’s reverb and the vocals are Christmas-carolesque – but the shimmering guitar and its pulsing, gritty sub-bass give it a distinct and modern flavour.

Gelling tightly with these vintage sounds, the accompanying video is a re-stitching of two amazing educational videos that have made their way into the public domain: 70′s anti-drug campaign “Drugs Are Like That” and 90′s bus safety film “Ghost Rider“. They just don’t make videos like they used to…

If this track is anything to go by, JASIA is a producer to keep tabs on.
You can grab ‘Inverbatim’ from JASIA’s bandcamp now – along with a pretty amazing cover of Frank Ocean’s ‘Forrest Gump’. - FBi Radio

Kind of like the gloriousness that was NYC Weather yesterday. - Sonic Llama - Music Catered from the mountains of NYC

Jasia - Inverbatim - Hilly Dilly

Jasia - Inverbatim - AdamNotEve