BEST NEW INDIE: JACOB BANKS - CHAINSMOKING

In The Case Of Jacob Banks, 'Chainsmoking' Is Very, Very Good For You!

Smoking is kind of an interesting contradiction. Technically, nicotine is a stimulant and yet it tends to calm you down, coating your nerves with molasses - comforting, soothing, and relaxing. It's also terrible for you, ripping your lungs to shreds and taking years off of your life, while simultaneously making most physical activities much more difficult.

Love can be similarly contradictory, being both excellent and inspiring while also being a health hazard - mentally, physically, and emotionally!

JACOB BANKS - CHAINSMOKING

On his newest single, "Chainsmoking," British singer/songwriter/producer Jacob Banks connects the dots between love, romance, obsession, and addiction, comparing a love affair gone wrong to smoking too much. "It's getting harder to breath, chainsmoking your love/Can't be good for my sanity/Can't be good for my lungs," sings Banks in a warm, dusty crooning baritone.

Banks has been bridging the personal and the global since beginning his music career in 2011, after being encouraged to pursue songwriting by a dear friend, who passed away shortly thereafter. Poignantly, Banks started sharing his gift singing at his friend's funeral, making a solemn vow to share his gift with as many people as possible, partially in memory of his departed mentor.

A wider audience was quick in the coming, as Banks' music caught on with British mainstream radio like wildfire. Despite the immediate attention and success, Banks' solo debut, The Boy Who Cried Freedom, was still several years in the making. "Chainsmoking" is the lead single, promising a soulful, gritty, raw-but-still-smooth opening statement.

"Chainsmoking" is one of the most convincing R&B/blues/soul/electronic hybrids so far, bringing together the mutant Delta Blues of the much-missed R. L. Burnsides with the post-Dubstep ennui and bassweight of The Weeknd or James Blake. While smoking a pack a day, or dating damaged people, may be bad for your health, "Chainsmoking" is the antidote, like running flights of stairs like Rocky every morning for a month. We Are: The Guard recommend, for morning health routines and recovering from heartbreak, alike.

Score: A