Kthxbye

Jacob De Greeuw has one of those voices. One wonders how good bands like Keane or Starsailor could be with a guy like this at the helm, where his bristling tenor could anchor a ship aiming for the atmosphere. But as the song goes, I don’t have to wonder — he’s the lead singer of Holland’s Johan, a perpetually underrated band that always seems to get lost in the shuffle. Thx Jhn is not the band’s opus, but it is, perhaps, the album that might let them to break through. Comparable to (but better than) I Am Kloot and many of their post-Britpop contemporaries, De Greeuw’s voice and the band’s chiming guitars makes them an act to watch.

Johan – “Oceans”: mp3

And my personal favorite, from 2001’s fantastic Pergola:

Johan – “Tumble and Fall”: mp3

(Buy Thx Jhn from the band’s site)