Jazz Mills

EP 1

If her name doesn’t ring a bell yet, Jazz Mills’ voice might. Founding member of Cowboy & Indian, collaborator with over 30 locals including T Bird & the Breaks and Leopold & His Fiction, and opener for Stevie Wonder and Arcade Fire, this Austin songbird finally struck out solo late last year with this four-song EP. “Little Baby” opens with a classic Western bass line, and bursts into dueling harmonies – Patsy Cline on the upbeat. Mills’ lower register is rich and her equally intriguing head voice incorporates a unique, lovely vibrato, both on full display in “Meet My Father.” Soaring highs and confident lows atop rolling piano and easy percussion make this old-fashioned love song a keeper. “Red Hot Mama” offers straight flapper jazz, complete with an Édith Piaf trill, while “Pop Song” reflects Sixties retro mod. Ten minutes only, but they stick.

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This article appears in February 7 • 2014.

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