(ALLENDALE, NJ) -- For those who believe they've got John Paciga pegged, well, think again. When New Jersey Stage last spoke with the young musician, he had just graduated from Delbarton School in Morristown and was preparing to start a new chapter at Yale University. The New Jersey teenager is back with No Alibi - a release that adds new dimensions to the sound his fans have become accustomed to.
Among the musical changes, No Alibi includes a surprisingly tough, rocking guitar attack on songs like "Tantalized". Fans of his piano needn't worry; Paciga's playing is skilled enough, and flashy enough, to stand up to any arrangement choices, no matter how aggressive they are. He shows he can reach for a show-stopping crescendo on the forceful "When's The Last Time", engage in meditative, grown-up storytelling on the winsome "Flight Delayed", and stitch together song sections with the confidence of an experienced producer on "075". Paciga even raps a little on "Punching Bag", and if that isn't experimentation enough, he crowns the song with a wild analog synthesizer solo.
These are new approaches for a singer-songwriter whose feet are already squarely on the ground, and who is busily adding to a bag of tricks that's already stuffed. He's already demonstrated his firm grasp of piano-pop traditionalism; what's new on No Alibi is his fearlessness. It's rare that an artist can boast a wide range of open doors in front of them, but Paciga certainly can. He could be a theatrical rocker at the eighty-eight in the style of Billy Joel or Ben Folds; he could take his talents to Broadway; he could come up with something entirely new and unexpected. Whatever it is, it's going to be exciting to see it unfold – and No Alibi is a crucial, unmissable step on a thrilling journey.
It seems hard to believe that it was only two years ago when he established himself as a piano-rock prodigy with the release of his Gotta Play EP at the age of 16. He followed that with the full-lengthed release, Other Side of Town, and his striking over of David Foster and Carole Bayer Sager's "The Prayer" which was premiered at New Jersey Stage. We told readers to keep their eye on this kid... keep watching!
