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Based in Atlanta, born in The Island of Dominica and influenced by multiple genres and performers (Barbra Streisand to Michael Jackson for starters), Heston Francis is one of those stone-to-the-bone entertainers who is so skilled, smooth and versatile that it’s hard to believe that he’s not a household name yet. Since the release of his self-titled 2003 EP, the singer/songwriter/composer/producer has traveled the road less taken as an independent artist, but still enjoys a steady groundswell of exposure and support thanks to airplay in the US and the UK and his appearance in various platforms and soul compilations (Airtran Airlines Inflight Entertainment, XM Satellite, etc.). Anyone can sing about love, but its uncommon to display the various tones and textures within the emotion as vividly as Heston does in his latest CD, Warm Human, Cold World.
Based in Atlanta, born in The Island of Dominica and influenced by multiple genres and performers (Barbra Streisand to Michael Jackson for starters), Heston Francis is one of those stone-to-the-bone entertainers who is so skilled, smooth and versatile that it’s hard to believe that he’s not a household name yet. Since the release of his self-titled 2003 EP, the singer/songwriter/composer/producer has traveled the road less taken as an independent artist, but still enjoys a steady groundswell of exposure and support thanks to airplay in the US and the UK and his appearance in various platforms and soul compilations (Airtran Airlines Inflight Entertainment, XM Satellite, etc.). Anyone can sing about love, but its uncommon to display the various tones and textures within the emotion as vividly as Heston does in his latest CD, Warm Human, Cold World.
As lyricist, composer, executive producer and vocalist, Heston offers the full gamut amongst the twelve tracks: “Lonely In My Room” languidly unfurls the picture of a man struggling to accept that two are no longer one, while the mid-tempo “Outside Your Window” calls an existence without the lady in question to be one he’d rather not imagine, making efficient use of his lilting falsetto and sinewy tenor range as he pleads his case. “The Greatest Lover” is a breathless, horn-rimmed and buoyant up tempo accounting of his lady’s assets, calling them a once-in-a-lifetime emotional event (“a love so pure and so true, the purest I’ve ever seen/I’ve never known and never again will I be, a witness to history”).
To make it plain, Heston Francis is a soul provider who not only explores the carnality of a relationship, but its capacity to heal and actualize him on multiple levels as a man. Anyone can set an ode to their sexual swag against a catchy 808 loop, but songs like “Warm Human” and the transcendent “She Lives in Me” demonstrate a level of self-awareness that’s anything but routine. A Trey Songz type, for example, would’ve turned “For Love” into Phone-It-In-Bump-N-Grind 101, but Heston’s exploration goes further, not making it clear until the last minute or two that he’s intent on creating something more profound and tangible than steamy sex. “Oh La La” recalls the lushness of 70’s-era soul and is full of ‘come-hither’ promises of happily-ever-after, a stark contrast to the surprisingly raw “Crazy,” which channels the angst from David Ruffin’s soul-searing masterpiece “Walk Away From Love” in its perspective of a man so frightened at the depth of his emotions that he’d rather leave than fall deeper: “Girl I hate to leave you, but loving you is painful/and I’m crazy about you, it amazes me/but I have to leave you because loving you is uncomfortable……I’m crazy.”
Recorded live and replete with actual instruments, Heston Francis’ latest CD is as authentic as it is enjoyable, embracing time-tested musicality and lyrics that add color rather than white noise until the hook drops. As long as this “World Soul Crooner” stays true to his uniqueness and keeps eschewing quick hits for quality, the (mainstream) world won’t remain Cold to his charms for much longer. Highly Recommended.
By Melody Charles