This song is fantastic, for so many reasons. Objectively speaking the song successfully fuses a subtle acoustic instrumentation with a confident and stylish, r&b inspired vocal performance. The track comes complete with smooth and memorable melodies, a mellow and calming musical backdrop, and a genuinely unique sounding leading voice.
The structure of the song is simple yet effective, sublime even – to listen to the soundscape unfolding and progressing. The three main sections of the song contrast well with each other, and the repetition is powerful in the way that great EDM tracks often are. Then towards the very end, a further voice comes forward, this rap vocal that adds a final dynamic and offers a fresh touch of character and strength to the whole piece. Really this fusion of genres seems as if it shouldn’t work so well, but the chemistry is on point here. The track bears listening to a few times over and never does it get tiresome.
Production wise the track has been beautifully crafted, the acoustic guitar sound is gorgeous, and yet alongside of this you get the fairly heavily effected, melodic vocal – adding a slightly industrial or modern hip-hop edge to the piece. Again, contrast is powerful, and despite the majority of the recording being quite minimal in terms of the number of different elements, the overall output is just right. What also works well about it is that you do, whether intended or not, form opinions or expectations from that initial guitar sound, yet the song and build up that follows is something else entirely. The unpredictable nature of the track adds a lot of individuality and helps keep it interesting. As things move forwards, the structure becomes familiar, and the track quickly secures its place in the long term playlist.
By Rebecca Cullen
Rebecca is a Musician and writer from Manchester, UK, with an MA in Song Writing
