Jamie T

5/5
Kings & Queens
Every music scene produces one act that rises above the microclimate to become a genuine A-list concern. In the case of MySpace-enabled mockney storyteller-songwriters, that artist is Lily Allen, whose success has put some serious creative thumbscrews on her contemporaries. Kate Nash opted to take some time out; Jack Peñate responded by continuing to be crap, but in a tropical way. Wimbledon troubadour Jamie ‘T’ Treays, meanwhile, has decided to just pull up his trousers and bang out a masterpiece.

Happily, Treays hasn’t equalled his previous achievement – he’s bettered it by quite some distance. Chirpy single ‘Chaka Demus’ is the poppiest thing he’s put out so far, but there are plenty more where that came from. Jamie’s palette of influences is clearly the same – as evidenced by the chunky beats of ‘Hocus Pocus’ and The Clash-esque punky reggae-party of ‘Spider’s Web’ – but his songwriting skills have come on in leaps and bounds. Treays also stretches his voice, alternating thick, syrupy semi-raps with ever-sweeter, catchier hooks.

Perhaps most impressively, Treays has also come into his own as a lyricist, with the album’s examination of the myriad stress fractures in London’s social façade providing some genuinely poignant commentary.
Eddy Lawrence
Available in stores.