Dionne Sturdy-Clow – I Could Be Somebody (2022)
Dionne Sturdy-Clow showcased her versatility while unpicking the knots of the human condition in her double A-side Flying with the Dogs. She is now turning her sights onto youthful optimism wrapped in the rock ‘n roll tones of ‘I Could Be Somebody’. Visiting the moment of coming of age and moving into being an adult, she fills the single with infectious self-belief.
Uplifting and energetic, she takes the best bits of rock ‘n roll and infuses them with her youthful sound and a touch of pop. Backed up by bassist Rob Prince and drummer Ali Reid, Sturdy-Clow looks at the lighter side of life and passion. The determined optimism of the track first took root after she wrote a song from a much sadder place and needed to look at the other side of the coin.
Sturdy-Clow’s vocals grab your attention as she opens ‘I Could Be Somebody’ with a wonderful rock vibe. While her opening performance is a bit subdued, the lyrics consider all the things she could potentially do in the future. The positivity of the lyrics builds the passion in her voice as the single progresses. There is a steady movement in her performance, that moves you from considering what you could do, to almost daydream flow. Through all of this, the rock edge to her vocals remains, offering a determined push to the feeling of the track. The humming backing vocals that enter later bolster the determined thoughts of the lyrics. The chorus is rather empowering in its statement that you can be anything you want.
Beneath her vocals is a foot-tapping drum that propels you through the soundscape. Through the opening verse, the drums take over the melody with a thrumming guitar steadily keeping pace with it. As the determination and passion in the vocals build, the melody moves to match. The crash of cymbals pushes the message of the lyrics, before a shimmer of notes brings a touch of modern pop to the soundscape. Overall, the melody has a very rock feel that has been tempered into a pop-rock flow at times. As the single continues, the flow of the melody increases and you rise into the vocals using the path the instrumentation lays out.
Dionne Sturdy-Clow builds a strange optimistic determination for the future through the rock tones of ‘I Could Be Somebody’. Her vocals draw you in with some subdued thoughts that turn into an optimistic view of what the future holds. Beneath her vocals, the melody enhances the building movement of the vocals.
Find out more about Dionne Sturdy-Clow on her website, Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.
