Lost your chill pill? Try this

Jack Johnson, your favourite banana pancake-making man, is back

By Sonja Steinmetz

Jack Johnson makes me feel lazy. The moment I put on any of his albums, my entire body gets hit by a wave of relaxation, a sucker-punch of calm and a dropkick of doziness.

While that may not sound ideal for most artistes, Johnson is the King of Chill. There’s just something about the combination of his guitar-playing and relaxed vocal delivery in that soothing voice of his that instantly removes any tension that my mind, body and soul are feeling.

It’s a whole lot quicker and cheaper than a full-body massage and you can enjoy it anywhere, anytime.

From Surfer Dude to Musician

The fact that Johnson is from the Hawaiian Islands probably has a thing or two to do with his laidback vibe which, very clearly, has influenced his musical style. A former professional surfer who was forced to quit one week after his debut due to a serious injury that left him with 150 stitches in his forehead and missing a couple of teeth, he turned to music-making as an alternative career.

His music is not ground-breaking, experimental or edgy. He sticks to what he knows best, which are simple yet beautifully charming songs about his day-to-day activities. Many of them are inspired by matters of the heart.

Replicating Success?

“Better Together” and “Banana Pancakes” are two of his biggest hits so far, and on From Here to Now to You, his 6th album, he may be trying to replicate their success but doesn’t quite succeed.

The problem is that after a while, the songs kind of blend into one another and it gets a little hard to distinguish one from the other but, hey, the overwhelming sense of Zen you feel when listening to this will soon have you forgetting that.

My pick for top tracks: “Shot Reverse Shot”, “Never Fade” and “You Remind Me of You”.

Start your day with Sonja Steinmetz on The Power Breakfast Show, together with Hubert Tang and Jamie Yeo, on weekday mornings, 6am-10am, on Power 98FM.

About Sonja Steinmetz

Saving up for an old-school record player, DJ Sonja Steinmetz’s first love is music. This is followed closely by cats, and ice cream. Tune in to her on Power 98.