Album Review

Rich Jacques – ‘Everything Must Change’ [EP] [Album Review]

Shot through with a myriad of scintillating points of luminescence travelling on cashmere soundscapes, ‘Everything Must Change’ is marvellously exquisite.

Published

2 years ago

07/07/2022

Randy Radic

Article Views: 973

Artist, guitarist, producer, and singer-songwriter Rich Jacques releases his new EP, Everything Must Change, on July 8th, reflecting the inexorable constancy of change.

Similar to a diary, Everything Must Change is the sonic text of Jacques’ voyage through the isolation and quiet of lockdown, during which he took stock of his life and realized many of his choices were products of established behaviors.

A health scare and a change of location gave Jacques scope to alter the way he interacted with the world, abandon old habits, and view life through a crystalline lens. Akin to a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis, he surfaced a changed man.

Jacques’ story began when he moved to Los Angeles, dreaming of becoming a session guitarist. Reality entered and he found himself selling guitars and giving lessons. Teaching others to play guitar led to his music being featured in television and movies. Since then, he’s worked with an array of artists, ranging from Lisa Loeb to Colin Hay of Men at Work, along with having his music appear in Grey’s Anatomy, One Tree Hill, and The Vampire Diaries. He also won a Grammy.

Encompassing six tracks, the EP begins with “Montecito,” opening on low-slung, shimmering colors flowing into an alluring, gliding pop tune embellished by glittering layers of music. Jacques’ luscious, velvety voice imbues the lyrics with soft, opulent timbres. Vaguely reminiscent of early Simon & Garfunkel, “Montecito” is singularly beautiful.

“The purple flowers and sunburnt beach / Seem so far but it’s still in reach / So I told my friends that’s where I’ll be / Think I’m home in Montecito.”

Rich Jacques by Tammie Valer

Entry points include the title track, rippling with gleaming, nuanced tone atop a gently throbbing rhythm as Jacques’ vocals offer polished, redolent sonic savors. The rich resonance of Jacques’ voice on “Can You See It” gives the lyrics a veneer of residual energy, at once lustrous and captivating, almost hypnotic.

“Even in the worst of times / We could always seem to find / Everything we are needed / Living in the best of times / Drivin by the voices in our minds / If only we could see it / Can you see it?”

The final track, “The Stars Above,” drifts and flickers with indulgent leitmotifs provided by an acoustic guitar and unassuming piano. Introspective and quixotic, there’s a wonderfully affectionate feel to Jacques’ voice, narrating the satisfying miracle of “your love, the firelight, and the stars above.”

Shot through with a myriad of scintillating points of luminescence travelling on cashmere soundscapes, Everything Must Change is marvellously exquisite.