Plot Your Escape With Allan Jamisen’s “Leave It All Behind”

Singing about leaving all things behind is easy, but making it all sound just like that is not. And Allan Jamisen managed to make his latest single Leave It All Behind sound so good that you actually start forgetting that doing it is not always as easy as it seems.

Behind this work is a Phoenix-based composer and painter, whose status as an outsider artist translates into his music as well. Instead of favoring one style and leaning back on it to create his music, Jamisen draws inspiration from a vast array of different artists, such as Burt Bacharach, Bee Gees, and Frank Sinatra. All of these influences can be heard in his latest work, which is as much about leaving a stale life as it is about reinvention and finding something new.

There is an underlying cinematic quality to the production, which pairs with the retro sensibility that gives this music a film-noir kind of vibe. One would expect a big, bold anthem about breaking free from all chains and a full-throttle chorus about starting anew. But Jamisen finds intrigue in the ambiguity of the setting. And every time the chorus reminds us about leaving it all behind, it does not sound as exciting and rebellious as one would expect. Instead, it is an open mystery that drew me in with its intriguing approach.

And maybe that is the point, really. Because as much as I like getting lost in the intrigue of the story, there is no doubt that you cannot outrun yourself for too long. And as you start leaving things behind, you will have to contend with the emptiness of the void.

If you are in the mood to get away from it all for a moment, I suggest you give Allan Jamisen’s Leave It All Behind a listen.