To the six songs of My Love Story by Jacob Lusk from 2018 has been listenedto about two thousand times on Spotify. The EP sounds flat and boring, like ahundred others. Why is that important? Because the same Jacob Lusk releasessongs a few years later that completely turn your emotional household upsidedown. Because his voice, coupled with the orchestral work of two producers,channels a hundred years of music history and can switch between opera andfunk and everything in between.
Lusk (35) is the lead singer of the Gabriels trio. They conquered halls andfestival meadows last year. In the Netherlands, for example, there wereimpressive gospel shows on Le Guess Who? and Down the Rabbit Hole. Those whosaw them will especially remember Lusk’s voice and grotesque performance. Alsoon the stunning debut album _Angels & Queens_which was released this month,naturally revolves around his gospel voice: sometimes a provoked falsetto,sometimes an intimate bluesy.
Yet that little tidbit from 2018 shows once again that just a monumental voiceis not enough. Violinist Ari Balouzian and keyboardist Ryan Hope draw on thewarm seventies soul and the theatrical grand gestures that unleash Lusk’s fullpower.
Compton
The album cover features a photo of Lusk being baptized in a river, a BaptistChurch rebirth ritual. That church protected him from the gang violence ofCompton, the hard part of Los Angeles where he grew up. Compton’s place inmusic history is especially marked by rappers like Dr. Dre and Kendrick Lamar.Although not a word is rapped at Gabriels, that intensity can be heard. Forthe production of Angels & Queens joined fellow townsman Sounwave, Lamar’sregular producer.
Lusk took a long time to fully unleash his unique voice. He took part in TVsinging competition in 2011 American Idol and placed fifth. The experiencewas not purely positive, he says in an interview with American pop cultureplatform dazed. “I was the only black participant.” Online he was reviledfor “my skin color, my tone, the way I looked, the way I sounded”. Itdiscouraged him. He toiled on, but initially got no further than that flat EPfrom 2018.
It’s hard to imagine seeing Gabriels on stage now. Lusk’s large body seems allstrength and self-assurance. He likes to wear capes, robes and extravaganthats. He sounds like he personally swallowed Bessie Smith, Curtis Mayfield andMahalia Jackson in one gulp.
Prada
The turning point came with a commercial song for Prada. On that production,he met Balouzian and Hope and formed Gabriels. For the first time you can hearthe slow tempo, the tension and the lingering, horrifying depth of Lusk’svoice. Record companies also noticed and in 2020 there was suddenly the single’Love and Hate in a Different Time’, which raised expectations aroundGabriels.
The song was accompanied by a remarkable short film. The first half consistsof a compilation of dance recordings from all cultures and times, from a Siouxghost dance from 1894 to TikTok films, mounted under the firmly turned retrosoul. But after five minutes, the viewer is suddenly caught up in a grittyvideo of a Black Lives Matter protest where Lusk plays a ghostly version of”Strange Fruit” through a megaphone.
The ability to conjure up major themes and music history in sound and image isalso a sign Angels & Queens. The album has an undeniably cinematic feel toit. You could sign Gabriels for a new James Bond song in no time.
On the opening song ‘Angels & Queens’ Lusk still seems light, but the song hasan angry undertone and on the central track ‘Taboo’ the orchestration ofBalouzian and Hope can be heard, while Lusk’s throat keeps the disruptive timesignature in check. The heavy ‘If You Only Knew’ is of the same restrainedgospel class. It’s only seven songs, just under half an hour. The best news isthat this is only part I. Angels & Queens – Part II is scheduled for March.