I'm not sure if I've ever had to turn down the volume on a song that could be pegged as "seductive R&B" because the bass was too loud. Ideally, the bass should be softly exhaling. Synthesizers need to ebb and flow without overflowing. Drums (programmed or otherwise) that faintly tick are best. Any guitars in the mix fit when they have a brittle feeling. The seduction element hinges on silence.
On "Share It All," Jessie Ware's second offering from her upcoming sophomore release Tough Love, the U.K. electronic R&B artist checks off the last three while leaving the first conspicuously blank. "Share It All"'s synth moves at a glacial pace under Ware's breathy request "could you it all with me, and I'll share it all with you?" When she's navigating in a dark room with a destination in mind, drums are quietly chattering under piles of ripped off bed sheets. The song's fragile reverberated guitars conjure the xx and sure enough the London trio's guitarist Romy Madley Croft co-wrote the effort with Ware. Though previous collaborator Julio Bashmore produced "Share It All," it’s the xx's work that informs the track. The idea of cavernous bass in an alluring number wouldn't be possible without the xx's "Intro" as a template. In "Share It All," each boom isn't meant to shake you, but echo the jittery beat of a heart.
It's more than the music though that makes the xx one of Ware's closest analogues; it's her uncertain romantic insistence. "Share it all with me," she calmly demands before backing down to "if you want to." Ware's asking someone else "tell me what you want me to do;" following instead of leading. Not unlike Croft in "Angels," she knows exactly what love is, but doesn't quite know how to pursue it.
Jessie Ware's Twitter page teases August 3 as a release date for Tough Love's title track. No news yet when the album will appear on Island/Cherrytree.
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