Jake Downs – Plague EP

Jacob Downs is still a young boy, perhaps too young to be taken serious at the beginning. This wrong idea fades away as soon as you listen to his music! Despite the tender age, Jake is a wonderful musician who can play a considerable variety of instruments and possesses a limpid sweet voice.
On ‘Plague’ EP, his first release, Jake does lead vocals, viola, double bass, piano and baritone ukulele all along six beautiful songs written by an elder soul inside him. ‘Plague’ is full of sadness and pain but is enlightened from time to time with happiness.
Opening with “Blackbird”, a baroque song where Jake’s voice has a brilliant performance alongside with the piano. To notice his sister Sophie Down’s exciting vocal collaboration on the end of the song; “Loyalty” is the centerpiece, a beautiful ukulele melody wraps the profoundest lyrics on the EP “Love, I don’t know a thing about love, cut the contentment and forget all the lust, but see I’m just a cold-hearted murderer, love came to me and I couldn’t help but hurt her”; the title track “Plague” has quite a medieval beginning and flows perfectly into a furious protest! It’s probably one of the most interesting songs Jake will ever write… “The Orchard” shows the first moments of joy and it’s a happy love song “I’ll lie here on the heavy rain just to be alone with you” among piano and brilliant strings; “Ships” follows the feeling in the previous song but in a more contained way. To close ‘Plague’, Jake chose a “Lullaby” he’s singing to himself and about himself, probably one of the most straight to point and personal lyrics in the whole EP, sung with a soothing melody…
After ‘Plague’ EP we surely will never look to another young artist the same way, Jake Downs is definitely a hope for music nowadays and the future seems to be promising for him! I hope to listen a full length by this boy in a few years time…

Jake was kind enough to offer a live version of “The Orchard”, recorded at Rachel Kenedy’s house, for free download.
Download it HERE
Also if you want to see Jake Down’s doing a cover of Patrick Wolf’s “The Sun Is Often Out” click HERE