The latest from Las Vegas-born artist 27-year-old Shamir Bailey is perhaps his most powerful LP to date – tumultuous emotions, huge production range from synth pop to metal, and explorations of queer gender issues via uncompromising lyrics and his expressive, rangy countertenor voice. From the toxic phrase opener Gay Agenda, to dramatic second Cisgender, a previous Song of the Day, with its dark, rock-electro-industrial sound there’s a defiant call to escape definition: “I’m not cisgender I’m not binary trans / I don’t wanna be a girl, I don’t wanna be a man …” What gives the LP such range and power is the lurch of emotions between pain and self-assurance, despair and triumph, from biting, angry Cold Brew to the upbeat, beautifully uplifting and self-affirming Marriage, Caught Up’s catchy pop, Reproductive’s tender, delicate delivery, to Abomination, which fuses rage and gentleness into rap.
A unique artist in so many ways, constantly developing since his brilliant pop debut single On The Regular in 2015, with a distinctive voice. It’s a wonder he’s not become a far bigger name, but perhaps that’s because he has so much to say on a subject still too difficult for the mainstream. Out on AntiFragile Music. See below the Bandcamp embedded link as well as Spotify to explore earlier work, including the 2020 album Shamir.
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