Why are people still sleeping on Miguel? The Los Angeles singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer pioneered the avant R 'n' B movement. And he's consistently delivered impressive albums – the woke War & Leisure his fourth. But this charismatic star doesn't get the same props as Frank Ocean and The Weeknd. #Wrong.
Miguel Pimentel's career has been defined by incremental success. Then unknown, he graced Blu & Exile's cult hip hop opus Below The Heavens of 2007. Three years later, Pimentel, all about the boudoir, premiered on Jive Records with the avowedly R&B All I Want Is You – his break-out hit Sure Thing. Yet, determined not to be an archetypal 'urban' artist, he ushered in a psychedelic electronic soul with 2012's Kaleidoscope Dream. The album reached #3 in the US charts on the back of Adorn, a romantic ballad evoking Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing that Pimentel self-produced (it won him his first Grammy).
While his new studio cohorts Pop & Oak were lauded as future auteurs, Pimentel would be compared to Prince. He advanced his aesthetic on 2015's Wildheart – its motif eroticised individuality. Tame Impala remixed Waves into a midsummer's night kaleidoscope dream.
In contrast to Ocean and The Weeknd, who both cultivated mystique early on, Pimentel made himself accessible. In 2013 the singer visited Australia for intimate industry showcases (YouTube his swoony performance at Melbourne's Boney). The next year, he supported Bruno Mars (!) here. Wildheart deservingly debuted in the ARIA Top 10.
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In downtime, Pimentel has collaborated extensively – duetting with Mariah Carey (#Beautiful) and Dua Lipa. He's beguiled Hollywood – his sultry take on Beyonce's Crazy In Love soundtracking the Fifty Shades Darker trailer. (Pimentel even portrays a member of The Dramatics in Kathryn Bigelow's Detroit.)
The hyper-competitive Pimentel has experienced his share of dramz – a feud with Ocean rivalling that between Prince and Michael Jackson. In 2013 Kaleidoscope Dream was nominated for the "Best Urban Contemporary Album" Grammy alongside Frank Ocean's channel ORANGE – the latter prevailing. Pimentel didn't join the standing ovation. He subsequently spoke dismissively of Ocean in The Sunday Times: "To be completely honest – and no disrespect to anyone – I genuinely believe that I make better music, all the way around." Pimentel was dragged on Twitter. The repentant soulster has since quashed any beef. Still, today Pimentel is perceived as being underrated.
In 2016 the reclusive Ocean unveiled his amorphous – and epically-delayed – LP Blond. Meanwhile, The Weeknd has transformed himself into a pop mega-star – hiring Max Martin and touring stadiums. But Pimentel expresses despondency over his fortunes. Will War & Leisure change that?
Topically, Pimentel has recorded a socio-political album in reaction to Trump's Presidency – and a Fascist America. The musician – his father Mexican-born and his mother African-American – has already emerged as a relatable activist for immigrant rights. However, he's also demonstrated global awareness, unusually covering the Russian feminist punk collective Pussy Riot's Make America Great Again. In fact, War & Leisure is less conceptual than thematic. And it's certainly not strident. As the title underscores, War & Leisure has songs about politics and partying – Pimentel promoting unity, resilience and positivity. Indirectly, he confronts that paradox in American society whereby, while the privileged deny crisis, everyone else seeks sanctuary in hedonism.
Though Pimentel intentionally prepped "upbeat" material, he hasn't switched sonic direction – War & Leisure as tripped-out as its two predecessors. It might be a sleeker version of D'Angelo's Black Messiah. The lead single, Sky Walker (co-produced by Pimentel's old ally Happy Perez), is incongruous with deep trap indentations plus Travis Scott's Auto-Tuned vocals. Rick Ross features on the opener Criminal – a hip hop, dub and heavy rock soundclash that peaks with Pimentel's multi-tracked vocals. Pimentel cut his very first single All I Want Is You with J Cole and producer Salaam Remi – and the trio reunite for the Slum Villagey Come Through And Chill, previewed in 2016. Cole magnanimously raps about "Trump sayin' slick shit/Manipulatin' poor white folks because they're ignorent."
Nonetheless, War & Leisure does have some smooth R&B jams – Pineapple Skies a trop throwback to Adorn. More ingeniously, Pimentel reinvents Prince. If Told You So (with Kanye West affiliate Jeff Bhasker producing) is a millennial When Doves Cry, then the apocalyptically grungy City Of Angels could be a Sign O' The Times track as covered by a supergroup of Red Hot Chili Peppers and N*E*R*D. Lastly, Pimentel wears his idealism on his sleeve for the celestial post-rock ballad Now – naively appealing to Trump's humanity over his ego as the "CEO of the Free World".
Ultimately, Pimentel's artistic identity is distinct from that of his peers – the Californian following his own winding path. Indeed, the biggest difference between him and Ocean may simply be that he doesn't self-mythologise or hide.
