Organs, an on-point brass section, percussions, various offbeat-rhythms and the ubiquitous guitar build the foundation for Evertons intruigingly welcoming voice.

Lee Everton is a wizard of relaxation: He makes "Don't Make It Too Hard" despite the roaring guitars still as chill as a walk on the beach. He is even able to extricate the blues of Tom Waits' "Anywhere I Lay My Head" from the genre-inherent severity.

Nevertheless, a light melancholy lies in between all the lines, never being so strong though to set the pace. Jovially jumping rhythms, as well as a fair portion of common sense, keep the music from a self-pitying walk through a valley of tears. It's the little things that count, which is wonderfully celebrated in the captivating "A Little Light".

The unagitated "Cry For Me" is purely made out of organic, hand-made Reggae, topped with a glamorous melody in the back. In contrast, the contemplative, Soul-laden "You Still Got To Hold On Me" brings back the singer/songwriter to the table and is, with a gentle piano, just made for "these silent morning hours".

Coming from the deep crates of Bob Dylan, Lee Evertons version of "If Not For You" becomes, with the help of a fragile melody and an island feel, one of those songs that are stuck in your head for days.

"I Want To Hold On" almost wants to carefully ask for a Waltz and partially reminds of a shrunk-down version of Procul Harums "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" - only a guitar and a voice carry the melody. "I love to feel the wind in my face and the taste of salt on my lips" - again, the little miracles of everyday life warm the heart and put a little magic in the daily grind.

The final track called "Lullaby" marks the emotional highlight, a tune rich of warmth, tenderness, and friendly memories. Those turn the pain caused by personal loss into slight nostalgia illustrated once more by organ and acoustic guitar. "I know I wasn't an easy child." But honestly - who was?

Despite all the richness of detail, Lee Evertons songs remain simple - in the best way possible. Unpretentious, easy like a sunday morning. "What do you want to call it? Songwriter-Reggae? Or Soul-Reggae?", the artist asks. "Who cares about a label?", the mind wants to answer.

"I want to make positive, uplifting music", says Lee Everton and reveals his humble plan.

The truth is: these are mostly the toughest ones! However the Swiss crooner's music sounds anything but that. His melodies are relaxed and airy, effortless, as chill as a summer's day breeze.

Still, it's tough out there for the singer/songwriter with a blatant weakness for Caribbean grooves. The burden of steady comparisons heavily weighs on his chest: His insightful lyrics and distinct Reggae-influenced arrangements make the critics say Bob faster than a speeding bullet (Marley AND Dylan, of course). His characteristic, but discreet singing reminds them of Van Morrison.
Lee Everton, being the way he is, has an answer that is calm as it is simple: "I believe, Morrison is one of the best white singers. I listened to his records quite often."

Certainly, he didn't wake up one day with his distinctive style. Born and raised in Zurich, Switzerland, Everton turned his back on his homeland when he was just 18 years old. It's the Jamaican School of Music in Kingston where he finally discovered his full love for the sound of the Caribbean.
He brought this spirit back to Switzerland and quickly became a pioneer in the about-to-be-born Swiss Rap- and Reggae-scene as an MC and guitarist for the group Sendak. But, very soon Everton moved on to new pastures: "I started to experiment with instruments and rhythm-elements and after some time I discovered a formula that worked out for me."

Lee Evertons sound is a reflection of his career and his cosmopolitanism. Displayed on his 2007/2008 debut "Inner Exile" that established him as an extraordinary artist. "Sing A Song For Me" walks along these lines. Still emotions, melody, content and the harmony of the three reign supreme

BIOGRAPHY, English:

The moments are rare when you listen to an album and you suddenly realize something is different and new and you find yourself immersing into an unknown world feeling familiar and comfortable all the same.
Lee Everton from Zurich achieved this with his touching debut album "Inner Exile". The singer and musician crosses the boarders between Roots Reggae, Blues, Country and Soul with surprising ease. Foundation for this unique songwriter reggae is Lee's own invented "Slingsstyle Rhythm", combining beautiful melodies with captivating rhyhthms and intense lyrics. The result is a new sound somewhere between Bob Marley, Bob Dylan and Van Morrison.
From his early teenage days Lee Everton was fascinated with Black Music. Searching for the right song and the perfect sound he travelled to Jamaica when he was 18 to spend a year at the Jamaican School of Music in Kingston. The sessions with musicians from all over the Caribbean had a lasting impact on him. Working later at the Quad Recording Studios in New York he assisted sessions with Alicia Keys, Kanye West and Celia Cruz. Only recently he attended a workshop for songwriters in Los Angeles where he met the successful songwriter Penny Framstad who offered him to coach him on two of his songs. A chance he took gladly.
Turning point in his life was a car accident which he survived mainly uninjured but which made him more pensive and sensitive.
With all those experiences he started to experiment with new rhythms and to create a new sound. The first outcome of this work is the album "Inner Exile"



Pictures:
http://www.rootdown-records.com/label/presse_index.php?uid=14858a79ce4c21d88c1d93304fb50ac1
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BIOGRAFIE, deutschsprachig

Die Momente sind selten, wo man ein Album hört und plötzlich merkt, dass da etwas anders ist, neu ist, dass man in eine fremde Welt eintaucht und sich in ihr trotzdem schon nach kurzer Zeit vertraut und geborgen fühlt.
Dem Zürcher Lee Everton ist dies mit dem berührenden Debut-Album «Inner Exile» zweifellos gelungen. Der Sänger und Musiker schafft es mit erstaunlicher Leichtfüssigkeit Einflüsse aus Roots Reggae, Blues, Country und Soul zu verbinden. Basis für diesen Songwriter-Reggae ist der von Lee kreierte «Slingstyle-Riddim», der wunderschöne Melodien mit fesselnden Rhythmen und gefühlsstarken Texten kombiniert. Das Ergebnis ist ein neuer Sound irgendwo zwischen Bob Marley, Bob Dylan und Van Morrison.
Lee Everton war seit seiner frühen Teenagerzeit von Black Music begeistert. Auf der Suche nach den richtigen Songs und dem perfekten Sound besuchte er mit 18 für ein Jahr die Jamaican School of Music in Kingston, deren Sessions mit Musikern aus der ganzen Karibik noch heute prägend für ihn sind.
Zurück in der Schweiz gründete er mit Freunden die Gruppe Sendak, die schon kurz darauf die frühe Schweizer Hip-Hop-Szene mitprägte. Mit der Band tourte Lee durch die Schweiz und gab über hundert Konzerte als Gitarrist und Rapper.
Bei seiner darauf folgenden Arbeit in den New Yorker Quad Recording Studios nahm er als Assistant Engineer u.a. an Studio-Sessions mit Alicia Keys, Kanye West und Celia Cruz Teil. Zurück in der Schweiz hat er ein eigenes Studio aufgebaut, in welchem er unter anderem Produktionen für Phenomden, Sektion Kuchikäschtli, Cali P, Griot, Seven, Big Zis und Patrice machte. Zuletzt besuchte er einen Songwriter-Workshop in Los Angeles, an dem er die erfolgreiche Songwriterin Penny Framstad kennen lernte, die ihm anbot ihn beim Schreiben von zwei seiner Stücke zu coachen. Ein Angebot, das er gerne annahm.
Der wichtigste Wendepunkt in seinem Leben war jedoch ein Autounfall, den er körperlich zwar weitgehend unversehrt überstand, der ihn aber nachdenklicher und feinfühliger werden liess.
Mit all diesen Erfahrungen begann er mit neuen Rhythmen zu experimentieren und einen neuen Sound zu kreieren. Erstes Produkt dieser Arbeit ist das Album «Inner Exile».

Bilder:
http://www.rootdown-records.com/label/presse_index.php?uid=14858a79ce4c21d88c1d93304fb50ac1

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BIOGRAPHIE, francais

Il est rare, suite a l'ecoute d'un album, de se trouver face a un son neuf et different. On est ici transportes dans un univers unique nous semblant pourtant familier...
C'est a Zurich que Lee Everton acheva ce si touchant premier album « Inner Exile ». Ce musicien accompli, chanteur a fleur de peau fait tomber les frontieres entre les styles. Lee Everton emprunte au roots reggae, au blues, a la soul jusqu'a la country music avec une aisance deconcertante. Cet original compositeur reggae baptisa son style unique le Slingstyle Rhythm. Ce style combine de superbes melodies a des rythmiques inedites et d'intenses lyrics. Le resultat est un son nouveau, localise quelque part entre Bob Marley, Bob Dylan et Van Morrison.
C'est des l'adolescence que Lee Everton se passionna pour la 'black music'. Toujours en quete de LA chanson qui fera mouche et du son parfait, c'est en Jamaique qu'il commencera ses recherches, et ce, des l'age de 18 ans. Venu tout d'abord « prendre des vibes », Lee passera une annee entiere a Kingston, a faire son apprentissage a la Jamaican School of Music. Les sessions avec de nombreux musiciens caribeens lui laissent encore aujourd'hui une marque indelebile. Plus tard, il travaillera a New York, aux Studios Quad Recordings dans lesquels il assistera notamment les seances avec Alicia Keys, Kanye West ou encore Celia Cruz. Fort de cette experience, il decida de se lancer et commenca par rejoindre l'atelier de composition musicale de Los Angeles ou il rencontrera la compositrice a succes Penny Framstad, laquelle se prit d'amitie pour Lee et lui proposa de le 'coacher'. Elle lui preta main-forte dans l'elaboration de ses deux premieres chansons.
Fait marquant et veritable tournant dans sa vie, Lee Everton fut victime d'un accident de voiture duquel il ressortira indemne bien que psychologiquement transforme. Son regard sur la vie changera et Lee devint plus conscient et sensible au monde qui l'entoure. Suite a ces experiences, il commenca à elaborer de nouveaux rythmes et a creer un son nouveau, son propre son. Le premier resultat de ce travail est l'album "Inner Exile" .

Images:
http://www.rootdown-records.com/label/presse_index.php?uid=14858a79ce4c21d88c1d93304fb50ac1

Most of the songs on my new album are based on a rhythm that I developped myself and (at least to my knowledge) hasn't been used before like this. I had spent years playing around with different musical styles but after a car accident which had changed my life I realized that I didn't want to go for the same feel any more. For the first time I had a problem with the Snare drum on the "two" and the "four", the so called backbeat used in most popular music styles. I still think this backbeat has a power, a decidedness and a straightness perfect for a lot of good music. But confronted with my own vulnerability I guess I just had to go for something a tad more subtle and intricate. I spent quite a while fussing around with all kinds of rhythmical ideas. Well, this is what I finally came up with:

The basic drum pattern is:

While the basic pattern is pretty strict the drummer can definitely play a few shuffles and open-hi-hats on the hi-hat where it fits and drop in a few accent hits on the rim or the snare every once in a while. Of course he or she should also play breaks, typically on every 4th and 8th bar.

The basic pattern of the rhythm guitar is:

The cords have to be played very short, normally muted. They can be played only on the upper four strings or on all six strings.


The basic pattern of the keyboard is:

So the keyboard and the rhythm guitar are almost playing the same.

The whole rhythm is played pretty slow. The bass plays an important role. While the drums, rhythm guitar and keyboard always play basically the same rhythm, the bass has more freedom. This is similar to roots reggae and the way the bass is played is similar to roots reggae too. Due to the more syncopated feel of the rest of the rhythm section the basslines tend to be a little more reduced than some reggae basslines.

So that's basically it.

Oh and by the way: A rhythm pattern or a style can't be protected by copyrights. Everybody who wants to write a song in the Slingstyle is more than welcome to do this! Just let me hear the results!