If I were a hunted serial killer, and a forensic psychologist came to create a profile for me, he would probably begin by looking by looking at what my victims had in common. Laying the glossy photos of my prey on the desk one by one, he may well deduce the following. “Well, lieutenant,” (I imagine him tweedy, American, and world-weary) “All the vics were young, white males, physically attractive, and mostly middle-class with no questionable history.” “Anything else?” “It would seem they all played guitar to a reasonable standard.” “And what does this mean?” “It means that if we don’t catch him soon, more bland, male singer-songwriters are going to die.”…Which is a long and unnecessarily convoluted way of saying: when I see an earnest chap at a mic with an acoustic guitar, I use it as an opportunity to join the two-mile queue for the ladies’. On one recent evening, though, my progress to the powder room was halted by something a little bit special.

Jamie Woon writes and sings songs. Slow songs, fast songs, happy songs, and sad songs; songs about the world and songs about himself; songs about the weather and songs about the future. Sometimes he sounds like an R&B singer, sometimes like a folk singer; sometimes he sounds like Prince, sometimes like Thom Yorke.

With “Gravity,” Woon has crafted a sublimely measured soul song, low on bluster but filled with feeling. Showcasing his deliriously supple voice, it is a track that reaches gently into your chest and wraps delicate fingers around your heart. The gospel crescendo is soaring and yet understated, vanishing so ethereally into a virtuosic guitar outro that you half wonder if you imagined it.

“Wayfaring Stranger” is a traditional American spiritual rendered cutting edge by the use of Mr Woon’s trusty loop pedal. Recorded live, one can only marvel at the way in which Jamie captures and layers the sounds of his voice alone to create a haunting, rich (and surprisingly funky) soundscape.

Woon succeeds where others have failed by combining innate vocal talent and awe-inspiring musicianship with a sense of curiosity and adventure. And while he continues in this pioneering and uniquely affecting vein, he is safe to walk the streets at night.

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