Today’s a great day because the talented Tiana Major9 has released her project ‘Rehearsal @ Nine‘.
The first time I heard Tiana Major9 was back in 2017, where she was one of the supporting acts for Tiffany Gouché (check out my write up about that amazing night here).
Seeing TianaMajor9 perform, I just KNEW that there was something special and unique about her and that she had that star quality. Her voice captivated the audience and had them gripped from start to finish. The vocals you hear on this project are the same quality vocals you will hear from her live.
Watching her journey up to this point has been wonderful to see and I was super happy to hear that she was dropping this project.
‘Rehearsal @ Nine’ is music to my ears (pardon the pun). It’s so nice to hear a quality Jazz project from a relatively new artist. From start to finish the vocals and instrumentation is real, honest, smooth and silky. TianaMajor9’s vocal ability is a breath of fresh air. Her sound sets her apart and makes her easily recognisable to the ear.
The opening jazz song, ‘Altitude’, has a guitar riff which reminds me of one of my favourite Michael Jackson classics, ‘I Can’t Help It’ written by the legendary Stevie Wonder. The second song ‘Mr Mysterious’ (which she released as a single back in 2018), really shows the depths of TianaMajor9’s rich tone.
Hearing ‘Cat & Mouse’ for the first time had me screaming YAAAAAAAS! The intro chords, vocals and the guitar are so warm and lush! ‘Cat & Mouse’ talks about the games that sometimes one experiences in love – I’m sure we’ve all been there before.
‘Better’ provides a slightly different sound; we get a jazz feel with the horn section, but the production brings it more into the world of R&B/Commercial, providing a nice difference to the rest of the project.
One thing I like about this project is the various breakdown moments where we get to hear TianaMajor9 in the studio. I absolutely love when artists employ things like voice notes, spoken word or audio of their studio sessions. It creates a realness in the album but also brings the listener into the experience the artist had in creating the music.
The last two songs on the project ‘Dearest Dystopia’ and ‘Levee: Let it Break’ are arguably the two most vulnerable tracks. ‘Levee: Let it Break’ (released as a single in 2017) closes the project, and for me is that one that gets you in your feelings – well it did for me anyway!
Make sure you check out this project; I highly recommend it. And make sure you get your tickets to see TianaMajor9 perform live at the Hoxton Hall on the 28th February; you don’t wanna miss it!
4VinylLoverz 