Gallant — Artist You Should Know

It is always a pleasure to celebrate a local artist who is doing something special, and Gallant is the latest such person to come across our radar. And we not alone in noticing Gallant’s talent – he’s already been pegged as a breakthrough artist of 2015 by the likes of Billboard and NME. A number of our own DJs have been celebrating his work as well, as Travis Holcombe calls him “a powerful new voice to be reckoned with.”

It’s easy to see why. Gallant’s take on R&B covers a wide range on the track, “Weight in Gold,” from a sexy, Burial-like contemporary style, to a soulful throwback favored by the likes of Leon Bridges, complete with a skeletal beat, a passionate falsetto and a sing-along worthy chorus. Anthony Valadez describes it well: “Gallant fuses so many different elements and sounds into each song – sometimes they fit right into R&B, then into roaring fits of rage and passion, before settling down with a gospel feel.”

Gallant’s “Weight in Gold” is blessed with a series of intriguing remixes as well, such as the Ta-ku remix, which adds some live drumming, record surface noise and other twists, making for a station favorite from an artist I’ve sure we’ll be hearing more of early & often.

Gallant plays with Kygo at the Greek Theatre on 10/17, then embarks on a national tour with Sufjan Stevens beginning at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara on 10/24, before returning to LA for a Red Bull “30 Days in LA” show with TV on the Radio on 11/14.

ERIC J. LAWRENCE