London-based artist Nigel Brown shows a range of quality songwriting on Freedom Beats The Drum, spanning from hazy folk to shimmering rockers within a consistent thematic focus on topics of freedom and love. He performs all instrumentation, apart from the live drums, which are performed by his son. The jangly, power-pop feelings on standout tracks like “On A Different Day” are full of replay-inducing moments, aesthetically showing shades of Teenage Fanclub and Matthew Sweet.
“All Love Matters” opens the album with harmonious guitar jangles and comforting vocals, emphasizing the beauty of a simple life with love, rather than competition. “Where The Fields Go” pursues a more folk-set direction, featuring heartfelt vocals and acoustic guitars, while “Might As Well” embraces a folk sound even more fully; Brown wrote the track in a cabin, and it exudes a sense of season-passing serenity with a fire-crackling warmness. Freedom Beats The Drum is a fulfilling, melodic listening experience from Nigel Brown.
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“On A Different Day” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
