There is a strange playoff between, on the one hand, agitation and pent up energy and on the other a smoothness and elegance of delivery which makes Ghost, the latest release from Zack Free, an intriguing prospect. Whilst the top of the song, the vocal lines and the gentle melodies weave into smooth R&B soundscapes, the busy underlying textures, the skittering percussion, the glitchy electronica and the warped, futuristic soundtrack below set up a strange and beguiling friction.
What in the hands of others might have ended up as just another urban tune with pop leanings in the hands of Zack Free becomes a more mercurial musical journey, one which is as wonderfully off kilter as it is endlessly beguiling. It proves once again that even within the seemingly conquered territory of commercial music it is possible to change the rules, move the goalposts and subvert expectation, well, you can if you think like Zack Free at least.
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