Bray and The Dens’ new single “Oceanography” perpetuates the identical distinctive aptitude characterizing the previous’s songwriting prowess up to now. The San Francisco headquartered recording artist and his cohorts are additional solidifying their standing as one of many pre-eminent alt/synth-pop outfits working right now with every new launch and “Oceanography” represents a determined leap ahead in each execution and ambition. Bray’s penchant for compelling hooks and one-of-a-kind lyrical content material blends together with his impressed musical preparations as readily as ever with out ever repeating itself.

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Avoiding retracing your steps requires an assortment of qualities. One which Bray and The Dens have in spades is that they method every new work by itself deserves reasonably than framing it within the context of what has come earlier than. It’s tough for any band or solo artist to sound like they’re debuting with every new launch, however Bray and his bandmates preserve a freshness with every new outing that surges with exuberance and unbridled inspiration.

I hear within the daring tempo change that defines a lot of “Oceanography”. It transforms a near-languid ballad-like minimize right into a sweeping synth-pop gem that’s stuffed with colour and life. The general coherence that the track reaches because of that shift is one in every of, if not the important thing to its success. I’m fairly taken with how the track’s threads coalesce right into a surprisingly lush mini-symphony of sound.

Drawing connections between the ocean and the item of Bray’s affection is a masterstroke. This flash of poetic perception implies a lot with out ever portray an image for listeners with a heavy hand – depth, magnificence, stillness, and vitality alike recommend themselves from the confluence of phrases, music, and voice. Bray’s voice is a perfect instrument for conveying these qualities. He has a powerful, but delicate, voice that grabs my consideration and particularly instructions my respect through the track’s stirring refrains

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These moments crystallize, as they need to, the center of the track. Bray reaches the zenith of his self-expression with out it ever feeling or sounding overwrought to my ears. The musical accompaniment throughout these moments ramps itself up accordingly and achieves a near-perfect synthesis with Bray’s voice. It’s clear that he and Dens members resembling guitarist Nervo and synthesizer participant Andy Easy labored laborious to create an unified temper for this observe and, like one of the best typically do, they make it sound as pure as respiratory.

I remorse not listening to this band and Bray’s work till now. They’re a number of albums into their profession now and “Oceanography” hails from their upcoming new album launch, so I nonetheless have time to redress my lack of familiarity. I’m grateful for that. I’m grateful that there are nonetheless bands and artists amongst us who share my love for full songwriting that checks off each field and virtually overflows with real inspiration. Bray and The Dens’ “Oceanography” has the spark of life in a approach that too many new songs don’t and it’ll show to be simply as exhilarating of a listening expertise for you because it was for me. 

Mindy McCall