Jimi Bennett Band are an Atlanta trio (Jimi Bennett on vocals, John Davis on guitar and Jean Carllos Lemes Miranda on keys). Bennett’s background as a preacher and Christian rock musician is very much evident in “When Love Walks In” which is essentially a song about love as a means of starting again, with faith being the bedrock.
The song is all glossy, sunny 80s/90s pop-rock. The guitars and keyboards provide a full backing to Bennett’s lead and the backing vocals give it a real gospel feel. It’s all very much an ‘audience will be singing along’ type of recording. You can quite easily imagine the audience learning the chorus before the performance has even finished.
Faith, Renewal, Gospel
-PurpleMistress
That’s the approach Bennett is comfortable with. He takes the promise of a new beginning very seriously and the band are fully on board in providing him with a vibrant platform from which to make his case. Davis is absolutely in his element with his bright guitar work and Miranda’s piano and keyboard work provides a real warmth to the vocal. The production is good in that it keeps the other elements of the music very clear within the full band sound.
Recorded at Bennett’s home studio, the single is also a product of an established working relationship. Bennett and Davis have been friends for over 35 years and the project brings together their experience with Miranda’s time in the Brazilian rock band Oficina G3. There’s a real sense of shared musical language in the recording.
The song is absolutely unapologetically optimistic. For those who like their rock a bit bruised and contentious that level of optimism might be a bit of a shock. I think it’s very appealing in that the performers are genuinely committed to it. They take encouragement as something you can work for and it shows in the way they’ve delivered it, right through to the slick arrangement and the backing vocals.
“When Love Walks In’ is comfort in the most comfortable of forms, comfort through a very familiar musical language. Its real strength is in the sheer pleasure the musicians take in getting that message across. Bennett is fully committed to every one of his assurances and the band in turn give that commitment a very welcome musical boost.
