Much of Billy Davis’ Family Portrait feels like a dedication to the joyful hip hop and jazzy neo-soul of the ‘90s, with reference points such as Arrested Development and D’Angelo sitting alongside those of more contemporary acts like Anderson .Paak, The Internet and Donny Trumpet.
The music is relentlessly positive, with enough jazz to make it feel simultaneously downbeat and smooth. This is largely due to Davis’ organ and piano sounds that lend the album both an introspective quality and a musical complexity.
While this isn’t a band album, the full sound of Billy Davis’ live show with The Good Lords is still represented. The arrangements are very tasty, with plenty of space allowed for the vocalists to feature with the guitar, keys, backing vocals and occasional horns being brought in when appropriate over the synth bass and drums.
There are moments that make the whole slightly weaker, such as spoken word track I Don’t Care. There are also times when the feel is a little too laid back, such as on Earthquakes, which is all twinkly keys and loping synth bassline. But on the flip side, some of the slow jams are also among the album’s standout moments, such as the Jace XL assisted smooth R&B moment Postcards.
All in all, this is a strong snapshot of Melbourne’s neo-soul scene and the faces that are leading the next generation of local heavy hitters.
