Loz Bridge Incited a Swanky Riot of Jazz-Infused Soul Pop from the Piano Bench with ‘Whatever It Takes’ –

Loz Bridge injected a potent dose of funked-up soul into his jazzy piano-pop tour de force of swank and style, Whatever It Takes. The songwriter, pianist and producer with a lifelong relationship to keys is a savant when his fingers are held in suspension above them, finding ways to entwine emotion and melody; he will infatuate listeners who treat technical skill as something to kneel at the altar of, while giving romantics the thematic warmth of sincerity spilling out in the form of an unconditional love song. Jazz aficionados may also want to prime themselves for the primal way the sax lines unspool through the radio-ready production.

The stridency of the euphoric momentum in Whatever It Takes sits beside the musicianship as the single opens into a riot of jazz-pop flavour. The production is immaculate, letting the piano gleam and the sax lines curl through the arrangement with after-dark heat Clarence Clemons would have smiled at.

After teaching himself to write songs in Amsterdam, then deepening his harmonic language through jazz-piano study at the Royal Welsh Conservatoire, Bridge brings depth to his oft steamy melodic lifts. As for his voice, imagine the expressive presence of Phil Collins fused into the husky magnetism of Marvin Gaye, and you’ll be right on the money that you’ll want to spend on his records after you hit play.

It’s about time someone dethroned Michael Buble, and I’m flying Loz Bridge’s banner.

Whatever It Takes is now available to stream on all major platforms, including YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast