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Artist - Natural Self
Title - The Rising
Label - Tru Thoughts
Released - 26.05.08
Posted 07.05.08
Press Release
With addictive beats, catchy hooks and stunning vocal performances, “The Rising”
marks Natural Self’s triumphant return to Tru Thoughts.
From the first note, “The Rising” drops you straight into the centre of a sonic
melée. The powerful, chanted chorus, featuring Nathaniel Pearn (aka Natural
Self) on vocal duties, gives way to lead vocals written and performed by the
eminent soul singer Andreya Triana, with an impossibly tasty, heavy-hitting hip
hop beat (with a dubstep lilt and some cheeky snares in there for good measure)
driving straight through the middle. Andreya Triana, definitely one to watch,
was one of only 60 musicians worldwide to be selected for the 2006 Red Bull
Music Academy and is now co-producing her first self-penned album with Bonobo.
The punchy horn stabs which permeate “The Rising” give a taste of the old-school
funk music that has played such a consistently important role in Natural Self’s
musical inspiration, and call to mind some of his earlier work for Tru Thoughts,
such as his collaborations with Alice Russell. The A side of this 12” also
features instrumental and a capella versions of “The Rising”, which both stand
up as quality cuts in their own right.
Natural Self has previously received acclaim for the 2006 album “Gravity” by The
Broken Keys, his collaborative project with Nostalgia 77 on Tru Thoughts, on
which he also made his first foray into singing. His debut solo album was
released on Breakin’ Bread Records in the same year. This new single marks
another move onwards in the continual development of Natural Self’s music. As a
DJ, Natural Self has travelled around the UK and Europe extensively and his
style has come to take inspiration from Latin and African music to add to his
eclectic mix of old and new styles from around the world. Natural Self’s musical
evolution over the years has seen him become increasingly in demand as a remixer,
and he has previously worked his magic on tracks for the likes of Nicole Willis,
Quantic, Abdominal and Elizabeth Shepherd.
The B side on this 12”, “In The Morning,” is a less hectic affair, but with a
spritely Latin-house influenced beat, stunning trumpet solo by Fulvio Sigurta
and irresistible vocals again from Andreya Triana it is still an upbeat summer
club gem. The dynamic horn hook, co-written by Benedic Lamdin (aka Nostalgia
77), is so catchy it is destined to be bouncing around in clubbers’ heads long
after they’ve stepped off the dancefloor.
Natural Self’s album “The Art Of Vibration” is out on 30th June and will be
available on CD and special 6-track Vinyl with full CD.
Review soon come. We only put word to the best music, so trust us this is a winner! Put the release date in your diary now or check back later to read the review.
Rating - /10
Reviewer - PT