Zeke Hunter - Earth and Time

Buy Earth and Time here (UK iTunes)

The musical world of one Mr Zeke Hunter is bold and exciting, brave and tantalising. The textured, vibrant soundscapes can seem a challenge in today's cookie cutter world of dance-pop yet the listener reaps rewards that are exquisitely satisfying. His follow up to still rather excellent creations Hot Fire Love and Sleeping Alone is titled Earth and Time. It's a song that continues to explore the ramifications of a relationship where doubts and insecurities are stifling the full potential that romance has. The music has a symbiotic link with the lyrics so that they are inextricably woven together - the prominent percussion is the song's rapidly beating heart while the electric guitar licks bring to life the combination of frustration and passion that are so prevalent in Zeke's inspired vocal. That chorus refrain he delivers not only has an indelible melody that will have you pumping your fist to the sky in euphoric agreement, but also leads into a harmonica solo that gives the song an optimistic tinge that surely a better outcome awaits (and reminds that it's an instrument not used nearly enough in the world of pop). Zeke fits the entire narrative into two minutes and twenty seconds - teaching us many things; firstly that it's important to make every nano-second of the song count so that multiple listens unveil hidden facets. Secondly, even in such a compact space of time nothing feels rushed and the music is allowed to breathe whilst galloping to it's exhilarating conclusion. Finally, it's a throwback to the halcyon days of radio where songs over three minutes were considered extended plays and lyrics & melody were the key components of successful composition. You don't have to go back to the start of earth and time to realise that this is both instantly classic yet with a contemporary organic sheen that's missing in today's charts. Zeke is an enduring artist for the ages. It's time to sit up and take notice. Class dismissed...

Top 25 songs of the week:

25 ~ Gary Barlow, Something About This Night
24 ~ Christopher, Tulips
23 ~ Jukebox The Ghost, Postcard
22 ~ MKTO, Bad Girls
21 ~ Will Young, Joy
20 ~ Maroon 5, Feelings
19 ~ Mans Zelmerlow, Should've Gone Home
18 ~ Nate Ruess, A Great Big Storm
17 ~ MKTO, Afraid of the Dark
16 ~ Walk The Moon, Work This Body
15 ~ Shayne Ward, Moving Target
14 ~ Olly Murs, Kiss Me
13 ~ Take That, Hey Boy
12 ~ Auryn, Electric (NE)
11 ~ Little Mix, Love Me Like You
10 ~ Janet Jackson, Burn It Up
09 ~ Mika, Staring At The Sun
08 ~ MAX ft Jake Miller, Ms Anonymous
07 ~ Jukebox The Ghost, The Great Unknown
06 ~ Brandon Flowers, Still Want You
05 ~ One Direction, Infinity
04 ~ Ben Haenow, Second Hand Heart
03 ~ Sara Bareilles, She Used To Be Mine
02 ~ Big Black Delta ft Debbie Gibson, RCVR
01 ~ Harriet, Love Will Burn (2 weeks)