Allen’s stratospheric vocals are in full effect on his new recording, Love Affair: Serenades of the Heart; a cool and caressing collection of standards, vocal interludes, and original compositions that narrate and navigate the intricate nuances of romance. The follow-up to his 2020 self-titled album, Love Affair, is a conceptual evolution from Allen’s first record. [The new recording] is a little bit more thematic, more dramatic in terms of the focus. I really wanted to have an album that shows the complexity of love, the good and the bad.” Supported by drummer Jonathan Pinson, bassist Jeremiah Hunt, pianist Dennis Luxion (who worked with Chet Baker) and alto saxophonist Brent Griffin, Allen’s expressive and elegiac vocals on the album’s ten selections ride on a melodic, moving magic carpet powered by intricate and evocative moods and grooves.