Review by Daniel Deprè
“Echoes of Goodbye” is an intimate song that thrives in its indie-folk mood. The arrangement is small but still confident and filled with emotion. While the song has lots of rhythm, there is still a sense of tragedy here, the singer is grieving through lost love. When we endure heartbreak it can often feel like the most intense sensation in the world. It’s a feeling that sometimes takes a long time to fully dissipate and that is what Nathan’s brother is reflecting on here with this deep and thoughtful song.
Lyrically Nathan’s Brother creates very poetic lines that are instantly relatable but also written in a way that doesn’t exactly explain what he has been going through. This song takes us is into the eye of the storm after a breakup where a person’s inner peace is shattered, and nothing makes sense anymore. He reflects this tumultuous sensation beautifully in the lyrics. “Such a force of nature, such a force to be reckoned with, such a source of frustration, when you’re not in the middle of it”. He then proclaims in the chorus, “I want to be in the middle of it with you” over and over which represents how difficult it is to move on after a breakup.
The arrangement reflects a person who is trying to get back up on their feet and find some confidence again. The buoyant bass guitar provides a catchy and fun foundation for the track while the acoustic guitars strum gently and mournfully. Nathan’s Brother’s vocals are reminiscent of the stylings of R.E.M. and Bob Dylan, singing softly but also with emotional inflection. The bridge features a piano solo that is melded into the rest of the instruments, creating a warm soundscape. “Echoes of Goodbye” is a folk tale for the ages that will certainly have you tapping your foot while relating to the message of the song.
About Nathan's Brother
Starting as a guitar and bass guitar player doing more and more vocals and occasionally using the piano to write songs, this eclectic musician from Haarlem in The Netherlands eventually took up drum and vocal lessons to become a true one-man-band.
‘One-man’ because every discipline, (including writing, recording, and mixing) is taken on as such but still deserving of the moniker ‘band’ because every instrument is played like a focused band member often recorded in a period in which that given instrument was rehearsed exclusively and tirelessly.
Nathan’s Brother’s debut album ‘Spot On’ is, therefore, a true rendition of the music inside a single man’s head without being over-discussed and averaged out by multiple people wanting to have a say, making it a collection of truly refreshing tunes that sonically explore the territory between Alt-Country, Brit-Folk-Rock, and Indie-Pop.
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