Jay Som: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

Jay Som: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert with tags npr, npr music, national public radio, live, performance, tiny desk, jay som, everybody works, the bus song, baybee, i think you're alright

Bob Boilen | July 10, 2017 — Jay Som is the project of 23-year-old Melina Duterte, who has been creating music for the past 10 years or so on a multitude of instruments, from guitar to trumpet. Though she played every instrument on her newest record Everybody Works, her touring band here at the Tiny Desk gave a rougher edge to some of the more premeditated sounds on her wonderful album.

Of the three songs they chose to bring to the Tiny Desk, one was a personal favorite from Everybody Works: "The Bus Song," which is a perfect swirl of stream-of-consciousness:

Take your time

Won't be long till our car breaks down

Your hands in mine

Feel like a firefighter when I take off your shoes

Before concluding with a thoughtful nod to her partner:

Take time to figure it out

I'll be the one who sticks around

And I just want you to lead me

And I just want you to need me

It's lyrics like this, alongside the comfy, no-frills directness of Duterte's delivery, which make Jay Som feel so welcoming and refreshing.

Everybody Works is available now:

Setlist

"The Bus Song"

"Baybee"

"I Think You're Alright"

Musicians

Melina Duterte (vocals, guitar); Oliver Pinnell (guitar); Zachary Elsasser (drums); Dylan Allard (bass)

Credits

Producers: Bob Boilen, Niki Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Niki Walker, Tsering Bista; PA: Jenna Li; Photo: Liam James Doyle/NPR.