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Ty Causey - Hypnotic
The sentences on the inside cover of Ty Causey’s latest album, Hypnotic are revealing. “All songs arranged and produced by Ty Causey.” “All lead and background vocals by Ty Causey.” The word ‘all’ does a lot of work in those two sentences for it likely explains why Causey can produce adult oriented R&B with kind of efficiency that a team of songwriters, musicians, composers and lyrist at some of our legendary studios would have been pressed to match.
Causey’s method also reveals a lot about him as a man and an artist. Causey the artist is a romantic. He sings about relationships. He may be trying to catch a woman’s eye in one tune, working hard to maintain a relationship in another, or dealing with the failings of himself or his partner on another cut. However, what he wants to consistently do is find that special someone.
Ty Causey - Hypnotic
The sentences on the inside cover of Ty Causey’s latest album, Hypnotic are revealing. “All songs arranged and produced by Ty Causey.” “All lead and background vocals by Ty Causey.” The word ‘all’ does a lot of work in those two sentences for it likely explains why Causey can produce adult oriented R&B with kind of efficiency that a team of songwriters, musicians, composers and lyrist at some of our legendary studios would have been pressed to match.
Causey’s method also reveals a lot about him as a man and an artist. Causey the artist is a romantic. He sings about relationships. He may be trying to catch a woman’s eye in one tune, working hard to maintain a relationship in another, or dealing with the failings of himself or his partner on another cut. However, what he wants to consistently do is find that special someone.
Causey the man commits to making songs that celebrate a woman’s beauty without objectifying her, and he strives to use his music as a means to draw couples to the dance floor where good times, and possibly something more, can happen.
So, while the title of the songs may change along with the arrangement and tempo, Causey’s artistic and moral compass remains constant on Hypnotic as it has throughout his career. On “Superstar,” Causey uses his music as a platform to validate someone who may not possess the things that society values. “Superstar” is funky work of musical inspiration set to a stepper’s beat.
The bouncy and up-tempo “Yo Energy” is Hypnotic’s best track. The bass sets the right tone to a tune about the electric vibe that Causey receives from the lady in his life. Causey is a strong balladeer, and any Ty Causey project that did not include at least one slow jam would feel incomplete. And Causey comes strong with “Anytime,” a track that finds him comforting his woman by assuring her that he has an ample supply of the most important kind of ability – availability. “Anytime” serves as an excellent platform for his vocal range that can go for sweet high tenor to assertive and confident baritone.
Whenever I hear Causey create music with his do-it-himself ethos, I can’t help but wonder what he would ever do with backing singers or another set of eyes and ears in the production booth, because this Jack of many musical trades manages to master a great deal all by himself again on Hypnotic. Recommended.
By Howard Dukes