Jesse Marchant’s Stunning “Illusion”
Though it is his fourth album, Jesse Marchant’s Illusion of Love may end up being a dazzling introduction to his work for many new listeners. This is first and foremost because after you’ve heard it, you simply cannot forget it. But it’s also because there’s something emergent about this record, like Marchant is coming out of his shell for the first time. And while you’ll hear remnants of Jim James in Marchant’s hauntingly beautiful vocals, Illusion of Love establishes him as a powerful voice in his own right.
There are no misses on Illusion of Love, but there are a handful of standouts that will likely linger and float in the space above your head after you listen to them, beckoning you to listen to them again and again. Opening track “All These Kids I Never Knew” operates as a moving social commentary on police brutality and innocent lives that were lost, as well as human rights and mental health. In ripped-from-the-headlines lyrics, Marchant revisits still fresh wounds alongside a solitary piano. “You can share a picture/And show how much you care/To be shot in the back/While you are runnin’ away … To be so proud in your hateful forum/Big grown man, small as an ant,” he sings in a ghostly howl. “Who you gonna tell who to love/When everyone’s just tryin’ to feel alright?/Since I was a kid/I had fought a darkness I would never shake.” This is one of the record’s most compelling tunes and one of its prettiest.
Marchant doesn’t limit himself to introspective ballads, though. You may hear hints of Radiohead’s mechanical In Rainbows-style rock arrangements on songs like “6 & 5” and “Nightships.” Other gems include “Heart of Mine,” a rollicking Americana rock song, and “Sister, I,” a subtle nod to Harry Nilsson’s dreamy pop harmonies. Where Marchant really hits his sweet spot is somewhere in the middle of dark solemnity and melodic pop rock, like on the album’s stunning title track. But “Frame for One” is the north star of Illusion of Love, and each time you hear its understated vocals and driving guitar melody, you’ll position your finger so as to queue it up again because you have, already, found one of your favorite tracks of the year.