Good Music Monday: Issue 7

I had a hard time choosing what musician to feature this week (plus I kind of forgot until just now). Anyway, I'm going with Jem.

• Jem was born in Wales, a Celtic haven bordering England known as 'the land of song'. From the age of thirteen she was singing and writing songs, basic recording equipment was ever-present and she decided that one day she would be a singer. Keeping her dreams of this future career mostly to herself however, after finishing school she headed to Sussex University. Whilst in Brighton, Jem's great passion for music drew her into the music industry, but at this point it was the behind-the-scenes side that attracted her. She hurled her energies into club and festival promotion, became a DJ agent and finally helped set-up and run the specialist breaks label 'Marine Parade'. After a time however, it became clear something was missing. She realized that she'd been circling her own artistic instincts and it was time to take a leap of faith. But that great leap forward first required a small step back. In November of 1999 Jem surprised her colleagues by leaving everything behind and retreating to the creatively inspired air of Wales and a lifestyle of sofa surfing. Moving from the limits of her dictaphone, she assembled a mobile studio and got cracking on her songwriting and music production craft. This turned out to be a fruitful time. She completed a strong collection of 4 demos and things began to move quickly from there. Jem moved to London where she continued her nomadic existence and started collaborating with other writers/producers. Two days into her first writing session with acclaimed electronic producer Guy Sigsworth (Bjork, Frou Frou), the song 'Nothing Fails' was born. Jem's music is a combination of bright melodies, soul searching lyrics and diverse rhythms that grab you from the first listen. Her seemingly innocent lyrics contain those closely observed details that are as much about optimism as they are about discovery.

Jem is another one of those singers out of Europe. It's all good right now. She has a sound VERY similar to Frou Frou, another great band out of Europe. They sound so much a like that I actually thought they were the same. If I had to pick, I'd go with Jem as the better musician. Her music is a lot more upbeat. It's dance music pretty much. It has a very strange quality. While listening, you drift into this strange world that she has created. That's the way music is suppose to work...

Next week, I swear I'm going to write up more on the artist. I was caught off guard today. I've been working on my new website, going through wedding pictures, and doing random tasks around the house that I kind of forgot to write up something in advance.

Previous Issues:
The Music
Diana Krall
Cary Brothers
Joydrop
Mr. T Experience
Medeski, Martin, and Wood