Pete Ayres Band - 'Till I See You'

We take a listen to the newest release by NYC based Pete Ayres Band. We shared the premiere of their single “Occupied” with a little Q&A back in April. We were looking forward to the release of their newest album Till I See You and it’s finally here.

The Pete Ayres Band formed in 2011 and released their debut in 2012 titled Ordinary Friend which is available on i-Tunes. Till I See You delivers a proper dose of R&B, jazz, soul and even a tad bit of bluesy rock.

The full and current line up of the band is Pete Ayres (vocals/piano/keys), Andrew Miramonti (guitars), Nick Jost (bass), Isaac Kaplan (trombone), Steve Frieder (sax), Mike Gorham (trumpet), Coleman Bartels (drums).

The first few singles were chosen well as “Occupied” and “Such A Good Feeling” are the best upbeat tracks on the album that make it very hard for you not to move after full listen. With Occupied..well that bassline is just tight as all get out and “Such A Good Feeling” oozes with Michael Jackson vibes. Another great track that is probably stellar live is “Lightning”. It’s an almost all out jam session with strong performances on all horns, guitar,keys and even drums which is usually just in the background keeping the pace. “You’re Beautiful” is a great laid back love song and Ayres’ voice reminds me the most in this track of guitar great Doyle Bramhall II who I wish would release more original material as three albums isn’t enough (If you don’t count Arc Angels).

The title track “Till I See You” takes it down a notch and reminds of old school R&B and focuses on Ayres’ soulful voice. “I’ll Wait” is similar as well with a much more down tempo track all about loving that special someone. “What Good Is Loving You” has an underlying funk vibe and speaks of those relationships that just aren’t quite right but you stay in it anyway until it inevitably ends. “Sleep” is a perfect song to cry your eyes out after a bad break up. The horns and Eric Clapton-ish guitar riffs throughout complement Ayres’ vocals.

Overall, Till I See You is one of those albums you can just hit play and listen all the way through and feel satisfied if you are looking for a solid mix of jazz, soul, blues and R&B all wrapped up tightly courtesy of Pete Ayres Band.

Till I See You is available for purchase on bandcamp.

We are sharing our favorite three tracks from the album, but you can listen in full over on soundcloud.