sam williams - butterflies

Sam Williams

Butterflies
self-released; 2013

3.3 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

Sam Williams is musician from Stratford, CT who seems to be less concerned with making a cohesive album and more into making music he wants too. On his latest release Butterflies he mixes genres (some successful such as pop and others not quite as successful as we hear with his rap song) and styles to create a diverse if scattered listening experience. Williams doesn't have a particularly great voice nor is  he an amazingly proficient guitar player but he can write a tune. Along with songwriting capabilities are his production skills. Although the songs are sparse I was impressed by the quality of this self-produced bedroom record.

Williams states  that “This album is to cultivate some of the happier things in life. Just looking at the song titles at the on the album make this message self-evident.

The first song on the album is called “Butterflies” is a simple, sparse pop that is catchy enough but wasn't as enjoyable as his second tune “Invisible” The sounds in the songs are a bit goofy but oddly hypnotizing. “Smile” is another solid tune if a bit corny at times while Sam Williams (Featuring Robert Codio on Piano) - Fallen sounds a bit too lo-fi for my liking. Mr. Williams attempts too rap and fails on his song “I Can Rap (Fly). The song is goofy and can’t tell if he is being serious or not. He should stick too the quirky, pop songs cause this deviation was a misstep. Williams closes with an optimistic song called “Wonderful Days” which is a simple mix of his voice, guitar and some bass.

One thing that is evident is that WIlliams he  is passionate about his music. He plays what he wants unapologetically and its hard to fault him for that. While there are a lot if improvements that could be made on the album it does have some moments that are worth your time to check out.

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