By Deuce

There’s very little Damon Mitchell doesn’t do—particularly on his forthcoming Extended Player, Elise. Naturally, he’s on lead vocals. But he’s also doing much work on the guitar, ditto for the keyboard. Although he left the production up to Dave Martin on this six-track opus, Mitchell’s responsible for the songwriting, a fair share of the vocal production, and the overall direction of this independent release.

Set to see the light of day on March 2, the EP has obviously been meticulously planned out, from the construction of the individual tunes to the marketing. Mitchell video’d for the first single and title track “Elise”, which moves with good energy and sparkling guitar playing for the better part of five minutes. It’s not difficult to tell who was the inspiration for this one, although listeners might wonder if Elise is the same ‘she’ and ‘her’ that the majority of the songs revolve around. Part rock and part pure smoothness, “Elise” showcases Mitchell’s six-string strumming over a grooving bass that’s sure to go over well with the easy listening set.

“License Plate” is the second single and likely the final one until next month’s release date. Interestingly enough, this number is an obvious ode to the tradition of country and western, which perhaps isn’t surprising considering the artist’s roots in Fort Wayne, Indiana. “Plate” is one of those cuts that gets better the longer you listen. Towards the end, you’ll find yourself anticipating each note of the eminent harmonica, or perhaps simply swaying to the strings.

For the duration of the EP Elise’s strength is in the transitions, many of which highlights the drumming of Nick D’ Virgillio on “Plate”, “Heist”, and “Just a Face”. The oohs and aahs in the background on the “Face” and “Heist”, which kick off the EP in that order, are simply sumptuous and build up the transitions to climaxing choruses that deliver on the feel-good energy characterizing the collection as a whole. You’d swear you were hearing some type of Beach Boys throwback with the mellifluous harmonies on “Heist”, which transitions into a bouncy, party-starter anthem spontaneously at random points throughout the track.

With solid instrumentation, good structure, and some creative moments in the lyrics, Elise merely hints at Mitchell’s potential in the industry, and possibly delivers some rare glimpses at what’s yet to come.