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"Every now and then, pop&amp;#x27;s machinery produces a bewitching singer who is the perfect storm of elegance, talent, and understated soul. A singer who charms by way of a certain mystique, drawing you in with smoldering vocals and sex appeal that leaves much up to the imagination. Enter Jessie Ware, and her debut album, Devotion. The 27-year-old South Londoner first made ears perk up as a frequent collaborator of downtempo electronic musician, SBTRKT (pronounced subtract). On SBTRKT songs such as 2010&amp;#x27;s &amp;quot;Nervous,&amp;quot; Jessie&amp;#x27;s vocals blended well into the track&amp;#x27;s electronic blips and squiggles. What I love most about Jessie, and what sets her apart from fellow pop-star elitists, is her real, live humility (not the often-trite &amp;quot;I-thank-God-and-my-fans-at-the-Grammys&amp;quot; brand our society is so accustomed to; no shade to you, Ms. Gaga). One could gather the impression from Jessie&amp;#x27;s interviews that she&amp;#x27;s genuinely a pop star in the works, someone who enjoys playing dress up to play the part for her music videos, but the part is just the costume to make the presentation seem more real, not the round-the-clock persona. And Jessie&amp;#x27;s confidence for an album that sounds and feels so new is enchanting. The downtempo (but never depressing!) production on the album&amp;#x27;s 11 tracks is intricately simple, if you can imagine that. It&amp;#x27;s something like comfort food; Jessie&amp;#x27;s voice is like the butter that melts in your skillet before a hearty, satisfying stir-fry. These songs feel easy, laid-back, worn-in, but somehow always refreshing. &amp;quot;Wildest Moments,&amp;quot; though smooth, impressively carries an almost-arena-rock feel with its larger-than-life drum loops and even larger hooks. &amp;quot;110%&amp;quot;, my favorite track on Devotion, almost feels like an island vacation with its light-as-air production, illuminated by a well-appropriated Big Pun sample and a seductive, cooing sweet-little-nothing: &amp;quot;I&amp;#x27;m still dancing on my own.&amp;quot; Opening lyrics on standouts like &amp;quot;Running&amp;quot;: &amp;quot;Your words alone could drive me to a thousand tears&amp;quot; bring an astonishing power when juxtaposed with Jessie&amp;#x27;s refined sense of restraint. See the gorgeous video for that song, below: Jessie Ware is proof that there&amp;#x27;s no need to holler when you&amp;#x27;ve got the mood just right (though, we at Glamour HQ love good belting as much as the next listener). Listening to this album, I can&amp;#x27;t help but think of the sadly-departed Aaliyah, and her last, self-titled LP, a murky, moody prog-R&amp;amp;B soundscape that was acclaimed for its singer&amp;#x27;s and producers&amp;#x27; uncanny ability to make even the simplest turns-of-phrase deeply heartfelt. There&amp;#x27;s a real sophistication to that level of communication. Few have been poised to do that since Aaliyah. I honestly believe Devotion makes Jessie Ware a pretty convincing frontrunner. Also out today: Bloc Party--Four; The Darkness--Hot Cakes; Owl City--The Midsummer Station; Trey Songz--Chapter V; Yeasayer--Fragrant World Do we love Jessie Ware&amp;#x27;s sensuous sound, darlings? Ugh, I seriously cannot stop listening. What do ya&amp;#x27;ll think? Let me know, comment below! More music you&amp;#x27;ll love... *Morning Jam: Ciara&amp;#x27;s &amp;quot;Livin&amp;#x27; It Up&amp;quot; *The 26 Catchiest Songs You Can&amp;#x27;t Unhear *Joss Stone Talks Her New Album! YouTube"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/entertainment/blogs/obsessed/2012/08/jessie-ware-devotion-review>