Music Mayhem Magazine JANUARY/FEBRUARY (Papa Roach Faces Their F.E.A.R.) | Page 52

Leave Your Love is the first official solo release of Issues front man Tyler Carter. The first encounters I had listening to Carter were the covers he previously did for "Ain't It Fun" and "Hot n Cold" while he was still with Woe, Is Me. Unless you've been living in a barn, you are aware of Issues' rise with their self titled album released in 2014. I was a little curious to hear what his R&B solo EP would be like. The guy can sing - that's very apparent. Leave Your Love is a microcosm of today's R&B that's mixed with a little bit of pop. It's highlighted by six songs with big production. Some are tinged with electronic elements with 808's sandwiched in. "Sophisticated" tells a tale of a girl that has it all together, but is into the bad boys. I've heard this theme in other pop/R&B songs. It's highlighted by a constant synth and Carter's harmonies. "Leave Your Love" reminded me of a House Of Balloons track (although the content is tamer than the latter). "Georgia" is one of the strongest songs off the EP which I definitely think could get radio play anywhere. It reminds me of those big Usher tracks where you want to rescue the girl you love.

Rating 3/5: I like the guy's vocal range. He can definitely sing with the best of them. There are a couple idioms that I wished were different, (The talking in "So Slow"?. c'mon man). You can insert this EP with the playable pop radio and even the urban markets because the songs are well structured in that manner. If you listened to the EP and didn't know who it was, there's some instances where he does sound like The Weeknd in the softness of his voice. I'll keep an eye here because with a full album, I think he can go further into that cross over market if he can develop uniqueness.

ALBUM

REVIEW

Review By: Murjani Rawls