By Pratap Jayaram ’13
THE BRONCO BEAT

Graffiti6 – “Colours”
9.0 out of 10

I wouldn’t really describe myself as “indie.”

When it comes to the music that graces my ears, I’m a pretty average rock fan.

But sometimes, when I’m feeling rather adventurous, I’ll happen upon something extraordinary by accident.

Graffiti6 was one of those accidents.

Back when turntable.fm was what all the cool kids were using to share music, a friend of mine played a track that caught my attention.

Within a week, I was hooked.

Made up of singer/songwriter Jamie Scott and producer TommyD, Graffiti6 was like nothing I had ever heard before, and I couldn’t get enough.

With the release of their first album “Colours” earlier this year, my hunger has been temporarily sated.

The album truly lives up to its name, hosting the perfect mix of energy and mellowness.

It switches seamlessly from fast-paced tracks that make you want to jump up and dance to bluesy grooves that leave you swaying to the rhythm.

The album starts off strong with “Stone In My Heart,” a peppy tune that immediately captures the listener’s attention.

The energy continues with “Annie You Save Me” and “Stare Into the Sun,” two songs that had already been released but made it onto the debut album.

From there the album slows down a bit, and the multifaceted nature of the band truly begins to show.

Relaxed (dare I say “chill”) songs such as “This Man” and “Calm the Storm” flow perfectly into soulful, emotional tracks like “Free” and “Colours.”

After a short repose, the album finds its way back to the energy with which it began, particularly with the song “Stop Mary” and its fast-paced excitement.

The album comes to a close with the slow, spacey “Lay Me Down,” and finally the melancholy “Over You.”

Despite ending on a bit of a downbeat, the overall feeling of “Colours” is more difficult to describe.

The songwriting on this album is fantastic, as different sounds are showcased brilliantly and each track serves as a sort of microcosm of the whole work in terms of the many layers they contain within them.

I was particularly impressed by Jamie Scott’s vocal ability, as his voice seemed to carry a huge amount of emotion and added a great deal to the songs.

Scott also is able to bring a light and playful air to the more upbeat parts of the album so that the listener is ultimately left feeling neither exuberant nor morose but content.

My overall impression of this album is that it was, quite frankly, pretty awesome.

I’ve always been a fan of albums and songs that have great dynamics to them, and “Colours” gives just that.

There are songs on this album that fit practically every mood, and while the lyrics may not have blown me away, I was still able to appreciate Scott’s vocal skills and instrumental talent.

There were some moments on the album that I didn’t particularly enjoy, mostly the songs that seemed to have been most influenced by soul and R&B, but in general I’m not a huge fan of that type of music so my view is a bit polarized.

For the most part, I felt that the album was a great medley of different styles and sounds, and it seems to me that Graffiti6 have hit upon a creative and unique style that manages to please almost everyone.

However, the album did have one major failing: it lied.

In fact, by the time I was done listening, I was absolutely not “over” Graffit6.