Customer Reviews

Black Box EP

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I love the unrelenting beat and the smoky top range of Jann Klose's vocals on the exciting title song from his album, "Black Box". In the second cut, "It's Not the Way", the questions and answers in both romantic lyrics (Where is my heart? where is me? Here is my heart...) and corresponding percussion, keyboards, and upright bass provide echoes of tenderness and passion and Klose's angular vocals show off a wide range and an abundance of sensitivity to dynamics and color shadings. To contrast, the promise of love is imaginatively alive, yet set in the purest of vocal forms in his beautiful ballad "Fever in My Heart", expressing a straightforward, folksy, sexy reflection of Klose's poetic voice. Just when I began to ease off into peaceful reverie, Klose's rendition of "Walk Through the River" got me revved up into driving jump up and down "twist and shout" mode. Klose's gutsy take-charge vocals surrounded by an intense river of energetic reverberations sends the listener into the joyful space of easy abandonment to circumstance. His band provides solid support, his music is connected, gutsy, driving, intense, alternately great for a variety of moods. Klose is a talented singer/songwriter well worth a listen. I can't wait for his next album.

I got involved with this EP because this young man has an excellent voice, he reminds me of a lot of the blue-eyed soul singers. "Walk thru the River" is a great song and should be played on the radio.

Jann's music is so refreshing! Every song is unique and moves me in a different way. He really uses his voice as an instrument, which in my opinion, makes him stand out from anyone else I have ever heard, EVER!
And if you haven't seen him live, please make sure you catch a show. If you think his studio sound rocks, just wait until you hear him live. WOW, he really blows me away everytime.

Jann Klose's vocal range covers almost as much ground as Klose has himself. A native of Hamburg who has also lived in Kenya, Klose whetted his appetite for music at age 16, when he came to Cleveland as a foreign-exchange student. After finishing his studies in Germany, he returned to Ohio to launch his music career, eventually relocating to New York City in 2000.

Klose is back in town this week, pushing a superb new EP of lush orchestral pop and jazz-inflected acoustic ballads. Sounding like a cross between a young Sting and a less histrionic Jeff Buckley, Klose's voice is pliant and powerful, and it's buffered nicely by the Hammond B3, cello, viola, and violin that brighten these impassioned numbers. From the blithe bebop of the title cut to the Art Garfunkel-sounding "It's Not the Way," this disc is a real find, meaning you'd do well to come to the Grog on Thursday; Klose is one of Germany's finest exports since Warsteiner.

clevescene.com | originally published: April 2, 2003