Artist of the Week: Jer Coons

Jer Coons impresses on his debut release, Speak, due out September 29. Mainly a pop-rock album with hints of country and soul, Speak is a versatile disc with radio friendly appeal. In fact, the title track is just a hint of what’s to come for this talented musician.

At first listen, comparisons abound. While no musician wants to be put into a box, Coons’ similarities only help to amp his appeal. Jason Mraz with a mix of John Mayer and soulful vocals that recall breaking band Parachute are a few accurate descriptions.

First single, “Legs” encompasses sing-along choruses that stay stuck in the listener’s head long after the last verse is over. “Forget the who the what the when/The question here is why/You set the bar so high and then you dropped it for this guy/You’re into insincerity/It’s scary that I wonder/Perhaps the bar was raised so high that he just walked right under,” he sings.

If “Legs” sounds familiar, it might be because it was featured on the Hollister June in-store play list. Incredulously, as the song played throughout the day in 6,000+ stores, Coons’ MySpace reached over 4,500 hits per day. As a result, Jer became the third most popular Vermont artist on MySpace trailing behind none other than Phish and Grace Potter.

Throughout the accompanying album tracks, Coons touches upon unrequited love, regret and loss. Always with a unique personal twist, he intrigues the listener with his storytelling. While “Boxing the Cold” showcases Coons’ soulful vocals, mid-song he distinguishes himself with an electric guitar interlude, balancing out the slow ballad. Additionally, tracks like “Girl In My Head” are pleasantly unexpected with a slight country feel.

A solid release, Speak, is sure to find it's place in the music scene. In fact, it is only time that Coons will have his own headlining shows.

For more on Jer Coons, be sure to visit him on MySpace and check him out live, now currently on tour. Listen to a free MP3 of "Legs" here and watch Coons' comical music video for the song below.



Recommended: Rather than giving you my comparisons, Jer's Web site has an epilogue worth reading. See below:

Jer often receives comparisons to many singer songwriters and performers. Before jumping to make one too quickly take a look at these facts:

Jason Mraz
Similarities: They both have a huge vocal range and can sing many words in a short amount of time with few pauses
Differences: Guys actually listen to Jer Coons

Howie Day
Similarities: Both play killer live shows with full bands, or solo acoustic with many loop pedals
Differences: Jer has never been addicted to heroin, gone to rehab, or dated Britney Spears in rehab

Damien Rice:
Similarities: Jer has traces of Irish in him
Differences: You don’t need Zoloft to listen to Jer

Bono
Similarities: Jer can count in Spanish
Differences: Jer’s real name is good enough to be his performance name unlike Paul David Hewson

John Mayer
John Mayer is probably better than Jer Coons

Cat Stevens
Similarities: Jer plays acoustic guitar
Differences: He is not on the U.S.A. terrorist watch list

Kanye West
Similarities: Kanye now tries to sing, which we can only assume is because he wants to be like Jer
Differences: Jer is totally modest