Those Sweet Reviews

This most recent collaboration between Nadine de Macedo and Morino is a perfect fit- an instant earworm and a brilliant musical journey-the opening guitar figures reel you in, the way the drums are programmed take you by surprise with a slight hint of metric modulation as they enter, allowing the rhythmic structure of the guitar part to really sink in, then a beautifully intricate yet solid bass guitar line gives more to the groove and this forms the basic backdrop for Morino's vocal melodies to soar atop...as the song progresses we hear wonderful layers of guitar weaving around a tasty part from the keyboards set to an organ tone providing counterpoint and keeping interest, those vocals as well I can't say enough about the great melodic shape Morino provided along with brilliant lyrics as the most important lyrical ideas are emphasised with wonderful vocal harmonies-there's a lot of great lyrics here to emphasise...and I do like the thematic structure of a protagonist who knows there's more underneath the person they really are than they want to reveal...(This is my interpretation here, it's up to the listener really...a lot can be gathered from the confidence and strength shown in the songwriting and production-this is definitely a song which would uplift those who are introverted) as I said at the beginning this is definitely an earworm-extra special mention must be made of the production here-there are so many immensely smart production choices made throughout: this is an immensely well-thought-out combination of exquisite songwriting and production, vocal and instrumental skills- a collaborative effort that is exactly as a collaboration ought to be; encouraging and highlighting the gifts one another bring, and it certainly shows right here. Often said that a collaboration is a great reflection of our community as it genuinely can be and is. Nadine de Macedo and Morino's "More than I can pretend" definitely lives up to its title here -if you read into the title as "this is as authentic as it gets"... Well this really IS as authentic and genuine as a piece of music can be.

Collaborative efforts are always a personal favourite-as these show us our indie community as it IS and CAN BE in one song-everything that is good and inspiring about our community contained within a microcosm. This collaboration between stellar indie artist Nadine De Macedo (here playing the catchy riff along with the rhythm guitars, the synth, the programming, arrangements and producing “Civil Obedience”) and The Karlos Kollective (of whom I believe were inspired by Nadine’s original instrumental and wrote the lyrics, contributing vocals and the lead guitar work) is a wonderful representation of how the combination of Nadine’s and The Karlos Kollective’s musical and lyrical mastery over a vast range of styles and genres of music can bring us an exceptional piece of music with exemplary lyrical themes. The thematic structure of this piece shifts the perspective from a negative viewpoint of our current situation to a more uplifting, positive and refreshing point of view. A wildly energetic and engaging rock song with a powerful message- I do like those harmonies in the vocals here-fantastic note choices and the vocal inflections from both the lead and harmony voices are very pleasing to the ear. Guitar riffs that entwine themselves into your mind and the instrumentation helps drive the message home. “Civil Obedience” is a brilliant and visceral experience and yet another example and reason to be grateful we have artists such as Nadine and The Karlos Kollective in our community. An outstanding collaborative effort. As with every artist here and around our indie scene-after listening through “Civil Obedience”- if you enjoy the music you’re hearing-do yourself a huge favour and have a listen through the artist’s entire musical output-with Nadine you’ll definitely be rather impressed at the sheer range of styles covered, and you may find a heck of a lot of collaborations as well. Everyone involved in our community-as long as there is no harm being caused to another-truly deserves to be celebrated and recognised as the wonderful artists they are and shown the appreciation that their being here is something we as a community are all proud of.

Ahh! Collaborations- something that always give us perfect time to reflect on the marvellous and wonderful sharing of one another’s gifts, communicating through music-the universal language shared, which now-even while there is the non-human dystopia that some certain technology has brought upon us-the ability to (as humans) communicate our human musical ideas, our real human emotions and share them across the globe with another musician and create a work of art such as this-this is a case where the technology we have now can really work well. Humans communicating and creating from one part of the world to another part of our earth-that is special. This track, featuring Nadine de Macedo and Crowsilver’s Sonia Hutchinson is a truly unique and inspiring combination of musical and vocal excellence that is genuinely a pleasure to hear. It’s quite a short piece but contains a lot of elements which makes it worthwhile. Piano introduction and throughout which weaves a brilliant tapestry for the vocals to elegantly glide. I believe indeed the secret of the future spoken of in the title gives a certain amount of hope-not the dystopian future which is threatening and lurking (quite real and quite sad really-why deny that you as a human being with emotions you can express, but say you haven’t the creativity to express these feelings you have is to deny yourself the opportunity you already have…) Unless you have a disability which makes using an instrument quite difficult (at the moment that’s a hurdle I’ve personally been striving to overcome, I still may have released tracks with voice and a light guitar (and a lot of previous releases re-released…however very determined through therapy to regain the strength to record fully (definitely a major goal)or manage this problem at the least-must reiterate that this is not a sob story nor blowing a trumpet either-why blow a trumpet about this?)) If you are human with feelings you most definitely have the capacity and capability to express your feelings and emotions without having to rely on something express what’s inside. Not sure if a machine (unless it’s the Paranoid Android of the novel (and movie) The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy) can convey emotions quite like a human can. That may be controversial for me and I may have unintentionally opened a whole can of worms here to say this, but I do believe in humanity and people having a voice from which they can express the full range of emotions they experience in their unique and quite miraculous lives with. That’s the beauty of being human. The hope and the wonderful alternative secret to living in this future presented with this song, using technology yet still retaining the human emotions and spirit that only a human can convey through the medium of art and sound. Making use of this extraordinary technology we have to communicate these wonderfully human ideas and human emotions with one another across the world, and for artists to collaborate and convey these thoughts and life experiences through music and art created from the initial emotion through to this finished work of art, indeed-this is a future that is a lot brighter to look toward. Personally I’d like to thank Nadia and Sonia for creating this work of art-this wonderful collaboration. For it is worthy of being recognised as the brilliant piece of music it is. The lyric that you held your head up high is so very much apt-definitely this is a song for both artists involved to hold their head up high and be proud that this work of musical art is out there. A collaboration will always bring out the best in one another. This track does just that for Nadine and Sonia.