Secret Evil

Fans already know from Jessica Hernandez’s debut EP—2013’s Demons—that she’s got something special going on, but to see the Detroit native sustain that energy and promise over the course of an entire album is further proof that she is a striking talent. Whether Hernandez is engaging in a sorry/not sorry relationship war (“Sorry I Stole Your Man”) or a song about regret (“Neck Tattoo”), she writes and sings with a ballsy passion that is impossible to resist. Her ZZ Ward-esque delivery is augmented by a healthy dose of attitude that recalls classic Tina Turner—particularly on the rock-and-soul dandy “No Place Left to Hide” or the Motown-tinged rocker “Caught Up”—and her raucous, infectious energy will make you dance yourself silly before you know what’s hit you. Even when the songs are turned down a notch, as on the soul ballad “Cry Cry Cry” and the classic pop rock number “Tired Oak,” there is still a palpable swagger that guides them along, and you will find yourself shaking your hips to the beat, perhaps even in spite of yourself. Secret Evil is one hell of a full-length debut, and you would be unwise to miss it.