Sexy, beautiful, raw and soulful... All words to describe singer / songwriter Shelly Bhushan and her new album, "Something Out of Nothing". S.O.O.N is a roller coaster ride of emotions thoughtfully strung together yielding a soundscape set to Bhushan's lyrics and vocals. Something Out of Nothing was originally conceived as a concept album anthropomorphizing inanimate
objects like a house plant, a computer and the City of NY. But it became so much more. Shelly used those objects as a medium to express desire, defiance, longing, heartache and exhilaration; lyric and music sewn together like patchwork quilt telling a story about living in the most beautiful and tragic city in the world: NYC.
The big tracks are drum and bass driven with crunchy guitar licks and soulful undertones like: "Flickering", "Who Do You Think You Are?" and "Feather". Others are seductive and enveloping like the quiet storm vibe of "Never Let You Go" that lead you to a big chorus drop that reinforce the longing in the lyric. Others have a slinky patience like "Intoxication". The ballads are sparse with room for Bhushan's vocals to fly, like "Moon" and "Unrequited Love Song". Influences range from Donny Hathaway, Pink Floyd, XTC, Michael Jackson, Hall and Oats, The Beatles, Aretha, Led Zeppelin, Supertramp and many others. Spectators have likened her and her band to a soulful White Stripes, a female Bruno Mars... it's hard to pin down, but the difficulty to classify is the very thing that makes Shelly's music so interesting.
