Intimacy: Album III… Kem album review

Five years after Album II, Kem releases Intimacy: Album III. The twelve cut cd is full of songs that are bound to sell to R & B fans who enjoy good music that is both sophisticated and cool. Opening with “When I’m Lovin You,” a jazzy and mellow quiet storm beginner, Kem delivers a superb track that is bound to hit urban radio. Kem has a way of making you take note of his range and this is especially evident on the first five songs on the cd. “Love Never Fails,” which although sounds like a rework of his current single “Why Would You Stay,” is a profound declaration of love that notes why Kem’s first two albums have made him a known name in the R & B world.

This album seems to stay away from the variety of subject matter covered on his first two albums, instead focusing on the intoxicating emotion that is love. “Mother’s Love,” is intensely sung with bona fide sincerity that sparks straight-forward openness in his voice not heard since “This Place” from his debut. Jill Scott adds her vocal touches on “Golden Days,” which is the epitome of swanky neo-soul that has come out in recent years from many up and comers in the soul genre. “Why Would You Stay,” the current single, offers up a tenacious lament from the Tennessee native. There are hearkenings to Donny Hathaway and Lionel Richie in the range offered on that song.

The closer, “Matter of Time (Unplugged),” does a remarkable job of updating one of Kem’s notables, while keeping it acapella-ish with guitar strings interspersed in the background. Kem has a knack for making good music and his third release, Intimacy: Album III, is no exception to that rule. It is a combination of romance and vocal mastery and is worth the time to listen and to buy.