Duluth-based singer-songwriter Lee Clark Allen makes a bold entrance with his debut LP "My World Is Yours," a gargantuan 20-track collection that clocks in at just over an hour and sounds less like any album than it does like a journey deep into the heart of human feeling.
When it comes to influence, the Toronto artist honors the greats that came before him, legends like Daniel Caesar, John Legend and Nina Simone, and with "My World Is Yours" Lee taps into his soulful convictions and timeless predilection for crafting art. Each song is a view into his own inner world, raw, introspective and not afraid to show both scars and triumphs. From the autobiographical confessionals to the universal stories of life, love, and healing, Allen has composed an album that is much bigger than just his story.
Standout moments come in songs like “Alive” and “Therapy,” which teeter toward vulnerability while exerting resilience. ‘I Get Weak’ provides a bare-bones depiction of longing, and ‘Ever Think of Me’ conveys the silent pang of memory and reflection. Not only do these compositions showcase Allen’s vocal range, they demonstrate his lyrical storytelling woven into melodies that stick in your head long after the final note.
Bulging at 1:13 across 20 tracks, "My World Is Yours" repays the patience and engagement. It’s an album that asks you to take a seat next to it and gradually peel back layers of its gospel foundation, jazz panache, R&B grooves. Instead of playing catch-up with shiny fads, Allen has constructed a sound that sounds grounded and led by the heart waves. On "My World Is Yours," Lee Clark Allen is extending an open invitation, a conversation, a confession and, in the end, a gift. And oh, yeah, speaking of which, that’s something else the title fans out to encompass and also anything we now all can call our own world.
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