In a music landscape that moves at the speed of light, an artist has to battle millions of other musicians on platforms such as Spotify, Bandcamp and Soundcloud for the time of day from the modern listener, which makes the debut record crucial. As a new name, presenting a confident, focused, and above all well crafted project could be the difference between a buzz and crickets. Thankfully, in Charlotte Dos Santos' debut EP, Cleo, the listener is treated to a young singer/songwriter who seems to be already creating with a strong and cohesive vision for her sound.
Dos Santos, who hails from Olso, Norway and is currently based in Brooklyn, New York, came to the United States to study music and received a BA in Contemporary Writing and Production and Jazz performance from Berklee College of Music. While studying at Berklee and posting her songs to soundcloud, she was eventually discovered by Kenny Fresh, the head of Fresh Selects, an indie label that has been working with other inspiring up and coming musicians, such as the extremely talented Kadhja Bonet. Cleo, which consists of songs written over the past four years, was described by Kenny Fresh as "a collection of loose ends" meant to lead up to the release of Dos Santos' full debut LP, however, within its 32 minutes, Dos Santos shows that the EP has the strength to stand on its own.
In Cleo, Dos Santos, by way of her gorgeous voice, walks in and around the structures of classic R&B and Neo-Soul. The first track, a cover, "Sumer Is Icumen In", was written in the 13th century and is sung by Dos Santos in its original language - middle english. The song, which opens up with birds chirping and brilliant vocal arrangements gives the listener a not so subtle hint about some of the sonic qualities of this project. Although it is soulful, there is a definitely a medieval influence throughout Cleo. Album highlight "King of Hearts", which seems to lyrically focus on an ex-lover's ego, is perhaps the best example of the medieval influence here. The ominous keys that begin the track, combined with Dos Santos' chant-like wordless vocals, set the tone for the organ filled song. An earlier interlude, "داية جديدة (New Beginnings)", takes a page out of the same book, with the rising vocals and organs briefly creating a surreal musical atmosphere.
Conversely, the Freddie Hubbard cover, "Red Clay", which is located right before "King of Hearts", has none of the singer's medieval influences and puts her jazz education in the limelight. Dos Santos gives fantastic rendition of the tune, iconic bass line and all, singing about the deterioration of love while accompanied by some beautifully light Rhodes keys playing. Other stand out moments on Cleo, "Take It Slow" and "Watching You" in particular, are not overtly linked with the jazz sensibility of this Berklee graduate, but excel with the unassumingly cool nature of what she has chosen to sing over. "Take It Slow" , with it's relaxed guitar driven groove is the musical equivalent to a perfect breezy summer day, whereas "Watching You" is anchored around a sensual bass-line and equally laid back. Dos Santos' decision to fill the track with vocal samples and open the track by speaking, not singing, combined with the bass-line gives the song a sultry, elegant - almost Gainsbourg-like - atmosphere.
Cleo ends with a song that stands out for two reasons - the first being that it is fantastic and the second being that it sounds radically different from anything else on the record. "It's Over Bobby" features Dos Santos, who is paternally of Afro-Brazilian descent, digging into the sounds of Latin America by singing about the joy of a break up over Salsa horns and rhythms. The song has what is arguably one of the strongest choruses on the record, with her vocals skillfully following the horns after the lyrical portion of the hook ("loving you was hard to do, I would never do it over"). Overall, Cleo is a collection of songs that pulls, in a quite literal sense, from the old world and the new. Despite the fact that the EP is very influenced by the past, due to the high production value, the feeling that Cleo is something modern - and mesmerizingly well done - persists throughout, making Dos Santos a musician to watch out for in the future.
