Jonny Forbin

“An individual voice (great pipes) and identity, while being varied in material.”

-Scott Mathews, Grammy Award Winning Producer
(http://scottmathews.com/)
- Scott Mathews

INNER EAR MEDIA
(http://www.freewebs.com/innerearmedia/)
Wednesday, November 05, 2008

New Review: Jonny Forbin - Jonny Forbin [EP]
Category: Music

Jonny Forbin - Jonny Forbin [EP]


Tracklist:
1. Funky A
2. OCD
3. Lady Love
4. Mr. Bigshot (The Espresso Song)


Jonny Forbin debuts with a self-titled EP. It features 4 singer/songwriter songs that have commercial appeal and will probably do well on smaller/college radio stations, which seems like a good step to start making a name for himself. But if Forbin can keep up this quality his fame will grow rapidly.

Funky A
Nice guitar strumming and lush vocals, slightly reminiscent of Howie Day & Jack Johnson open this 4-piece. Something that immediately becomes apparent is that Jonny Forbin is first and foremost a strong songwriter. Funky A sounds like a great, fun song, but it's also well-composed and everything is carefully put in the right place. The use of extra instruments and some subtle effects work remarkably well, and Jonny's vocals are a perfect fit. Off to a very good start.

OCD
The laid-back, well-performed OCD is something you expect to hear on a popular TV show (Smallville, Heroes, Grey's Anatomy for example) as it has that TV-feel, as I sometimes call it. Not the most renewing format for a pop song, but who cares. Forbin wrote, performed and presents the song with passion and he does this kind of thing at least as good as anyone else.

Lady Love
Lady Love is the best song on this EP. Vocally, Jonny Forbin reminds me of Joe Hedges sometimes, and the song is composed very strongly using a wide range of influences that all find an appropriate place in this song, which features great vocals and lyrics that smelt together as an impressive force, which interacts with the musical arrangement like a charm.

Mr. Bigshot (The Espresso Song)
Mr. Bigshot is another well-performed song, which would be interesting to hear live as it features some great guitar work and Forbin varies the tempo and sound well, though sometimes subtle. It may not even be the strongest track on the EP, but it is a job well done.

My experience with the singer/songwriter scene gives me a lot of material for comparison and though there are a lot of talents out there, Jonny Forbin is one that will stick for me. Two things that a singer/songwriter needs to climb out of the 'good singer/songwriter' into the 'great singer/songwriter' are passionately and emotionally inspired songs, and a good dynamics between the lyrics & music in the songwriting. Forbin shows he can do this very well. He also draws from a wide range of influences and his songs are good listens. The music appeals to listeners who like the genre and I'm not saying anything outrageous if I say that this EP promises nothing but good for Jonny Forbin! - Inner Ear Media

JONNY FORBIN - "Jonny Forbin" EP

(Independent/2008)

I know it's a bit of a cliche - a young good looking singer/songwriter that the girls will swoon over ... but in Jonny Forbin's case it's right on the money. The added bonus is Forbin is a fantastic singer and an amazing songwriter!

Hailing from Philadelphia in the US - Forbin grew up making people laugh and basically entertaining them. The turning point arrived when his father gave him an acoustic guitar as a gift and there was no looking back. According to his bio - he didn't learn the normal "Smoke on The Water" or AC/DC riffs that other kids learn by heart ... he went straight to writing his own composition while learning the guitar within about 2 weeks.

This 4 track EP is a great appetizer to the main course ... I usually don't really like EPs as they tend to have 1 or - if you're lucky - 2 decent songs with a couple of fillers or a live track - but this EP is a real cracker. Opening with "Funky A" which has a real Maroon 5 groove running through it. At other times there are traces vocally of Bono, JD Fortune and even phrasing similar to Jason Mraz.

Musically the arrangement is great -I love acoustic guitars and this has them aplenty. "OCD" is by far the best track on the EP and one that is commercial enough to be a single or one of those lucky songs featured in a movie or tv show like "Grey's Anatomy" where the favourite characters have their "big moment". I really dig his vocal on "Mr Bigshot (The Espresso Song)" also and "Lady Love" is a nice cruisy Sunday afternoon in a coffee shop kind of song.

This is a great introduction to a wonderful new talent ... and I'm looking forward to seeing the progress of Jonny Forbin over the next 12 months. Great stuff.

Reviewer: Karen Waters

http://blacklabelreviews.com/pop.htm


- Karen Waters