Brittany Howard is known and beloved as the singer and guitarist from the Grammy-winning Blues & Soul group Alabama Shakes. Jaime is her first solo album, and is a compact yet complicated statement. The title is an homage to her late sister, who died from a rare cancer when she was merely thirteen years old. While beginning work on her written memoir, Howard began the long overdue process of reckoning with and healing from this tragedy. She took a temporary step back from Alabama Shakes, not knowing what exactly she would do next, but knew that she’d be doing it on her own. There is nary a trace of the Americana-inspired sounds of The Shakes, nor the garage-rock worship of her Thunderbitch project - this album embraces a soulful, jazz-inspired sound. “History Repeats” starts with a marching band drumroll immediately sidelined by ragged breakbeats and up-front funk guitar. “Georgia” is an organ-and-bass driven ballad, “Stay High” is a sunny, twangy jam with a soaring vocal. “13th Century Metal” is a fiercely spoken self-affirmation features a guest appearance from Jazz pianist Robert Glasper, his electric organ stuttering like a telegraph machine. This record is deep and autobiographical but not mired in melancholy or the past - Jaime is at once quirky, audacious, and thought-provoking. This record is pressed on sandstone colored vinyl, and includes a printed inner with full album lyrics.

• sandstone colored vinyl
• printed inner sleeve with full album lyrics
• digital download included
• limited edition
• music label: ATO Records 2019

reviewed by T. AIZENMAN 09/2019