There must be something in the water cooler at the Big Crown Records offices, because they’re churning out some absolute magic at the moment, not in the least of which is this brand new one from Los Angeles teenage soul band Thee Heart Tones. One listen to these timeless sounding songs and you’ll be as floored as us to learn that singer Jazmine Alvarado is only 19, with the rest of the members no older than 21. Recorded and produced by Leon “El Michels Affair” Michels and Tommy Brenneck in a mere five days, Forever & Ever is smooth, soulful, and sublime. - Flying Out
Hailing from Hawthorne, California, Thee Heart Tones are both carrying on a tradition and pushing the boundaries with their music. Lead singer Jazmine Alvarado is just 19 years old and the oldest member of the group, Jorge Rodriguez is 21, but one listen to their record and it becomes blatantly apparent they are a talent well beyond their years.
Thee Heart Tones are Jazmine on vocals, Ricky Cerezo on keys and organ, Jorge on drums, Jeffrey Romero on bass, Peter Chagolla on lead guitar, and Walter Morales on rhythm guitar. As the story goes, “one day I got a DM from Ricky Cerezo asking if I wanted to write a song for his new (then unnamed) band,” Jazmine says. “I knew his drummer and the other boys from middle school, so they were familiar faces. They sent me an mp3 of an instrumental they’d written and told me they wanted lyrics, so I wrote some and sent it to them.” That song ended up being “Don’t Take Me as a Fool,” a downbeat, minor key ballad on which Jazmine’s sultry, pitch-perfect vocals soar, and which is now destined for their debut album. Ricky went home to play “Don’t Take Me As a Fool”, recorded as a voice note on his phone, to his dad. “I was hesitant. Dad knew this music better than anyone; he grew up with it. But he grabbed my phone and held it to his ear. His approval meant a lot to me. But he had the same reaction Jorge and I did when we first heard Jazmine sing. ‘This is going to be a hit,’ he told me. ‘You guys have something really special here’.” It was that same recording that caught the ears of Leon Michels and Danny Akalepse of Big Crown Records, who both heard the potential in the group immediately. After they signed to the label, Leon flew out to Los Angeles to record their debut album with Tommy Brenneck at Tommy’s Diamond West studio. They knocked out 14 songs in five days, capturing the charm of teenage soul and mixing it with their seasoned production prowess and the result is a modern classic Soul album.
Tracklist
Forever & Ever
Don’t Take Me As A Fool
Somebody Please
No Longer Mine
Sabor A Mi
Should I Call You Tonight
Cry My Tears Away
Need Something More
When I Met You
Highway Of Love
Holding On
It’s Time
