- I struggle to find enough to say about Travis Lee. It’s not because he’s boring, but because his music just speaks so succinctly and effectively for itself. Lee’s debut EP, Reflections, neatly squares away four soulful r’n’b cuts that tell you more than any quirky story from his background, or what you'd learn from name-dropping some bigwig he’s hung out with. This young man has arrived, he’s got what it takes and you’ll soon be seeing the back of him as he climbs on up the ladder.

Well, I should try and tell you a couple of things about him; don’t worry, it won’t take long. Like so much of the best urban talent in Australia, Lee is only sort of from here. Born in Papua New Guinea, he’s been kicking around Brisbane since the age of thirteen and, after high school -like a number of Brisbane’s most successful stars- got churned through the Queensland Conservatorium.

Last year he put out a single, Take You Away, a very smooth slice of synthy neo-soul, co-produced with fellow Brisbanite DJ Gavin Boyd and given a release by -of all people- those eclectic Germans Jazzanova, on their Sonar Kollektiv label, which at different times has been home to sounds as diverse as Fat Freddy’s Drop and Dimlite.

Diversity is an interesting way to think about Lee’s debut EP, Reflections, which you could say is simply neo-soul and future r’n’b, but part of its success is the subtle skill with which it works certain variations into the mix. Opener, Next 2 Me, brings a funky bass to the electro sounds and Lee works it as if this were classic Prince. It’s highly accomplished and proves to be a total smoothy without ever descending into the kind of creepiness that Prince often imparts. Given that R. Kelly is still selling up a storm, maybe it’s only me that cares, but it’s a relief to hear soulful r’n’b that can croon about women without becoming borderline neanderthal. When Lee sings “I need someone like you / Next to me”, it just sounds...respectful! Crazy, right?

The EP’s title track is a team-up with rapper N’fa Jones and swaps out the electro-funk for a slightly wonky hip hop beat, heavy on the twos and fours. It’s a genuine collaboration, Lee creating the beats and giving the verses to N’fa, only chiming in himself to provide a sweet refrain. The conscious rapping is no surprise from N’fa, but according to Lee reflects his own complex relations to lived experience, desires and how these interweave with the making of music. For all its high conceptuality the track again flows like melting butter, which is impressive.

Closer is r’n’b that could’ve been produced any time in the last ten years, a slice of straight-up seduction, but to hear the standards of the genre being invoked so effectively down here in Australia, that’s its own kind of success. Further, it builds to a breathy climax, layering in explosions of synth melody, slowly edging closer to the contemporary taste for multi-hued electro-funk. It’s an astute work.

After the long, slow lull of Closer, Tell Me closes the EP with a more frisky energy: burning and love-lorn, bumping about in a tensely restrained funk that mirrors the song’s lyrical angst. It’s a shame that Elesia Iimura, another rising star in local r’n’b, didn’t get more of a look in on this track. Her voice is amazing, but Lee should’ve made some time for some ridiculously self-indulgent solos: it would’ve been worth it.

Reflections is four slices of smooth and in many ways subtle urban music that -nonetheless- make a very bold statement about Travis Lee. His is an impressive talent in a genre that Australia has, traditionally, been quite weak in. I wouldn’t be surprised if the majors were circling like sharks. Get into him before Def Jam signs him, you can say you knew him before.

- Chris Cobcroft.