Review by Dom Vigil
Sometimes, an album comes along, and listening to it is like a breath of fresh air. Finding albums or artists that do that, however, are pretty few and far between, though. It seems that these days, the music scene is saturated with so many bands that just all sound alike, that it’s hard to weed out the mediocre ones and really find an album worth listening to. Jesse Denaro’s first full length record, Dear, Love, however, is without a doubt one of those albums.
Seconds into Jesse’s vocals in the first track “Someone Save My Life”, I knew that this was an album that would stick out for me. It’s a perfect opening song, upbeat and emotional, and everything that, as an artist, you’d want it to be. It’s a song that really grabs the listener, keeping them around for the other nine songs.
Another standout on the album is “The Grand La Monz”. While the song starts out slow and soft with just vocals and an acoustic guitar, it seamlessly transitions into a full band, making it seem natural and easy. Not only is the songwriting flawless, but the lyrics on this track are beautiful and relatable. And while they’re not necessarily the happiest lyrics, with lines such as “I just want to be well inside,” and “happiness doesn’t visit me anymore,” the song is hopeful and upbeat, making for a great contrast.
The only downside with Dear, Love is that some of the songs don’t seem to fit as much with the others. But despite that one minuscule flaw, Jesse Denaro has really mastered his full-length album, creating a big handful of gorgeous, well written and relatable songs.
Rating: 4/5
Listen to “The Grand La Monz”