No Lonesome – Strange How (2021)
With their single ‘For Carlo’, No Lonesome treated us to their balanced interplay of Latin horns, storytelling lyrics and folk stylings. Their new single ‘Strange How’ removes the Latin horns and replaces them with a winding guitar as they tell the story of a woman dealing with loss. The balancing act they perfectly displayed in their last track is back with this one as they bring sonic freshness to melancholic emotions.
With delicately crafted melodic layers, the single fills you with the emotions of the story while pulling you under the spell of their music. Drawing on old school folk traditions including fingerpicking styles, the single is a gentle burst of folk sensibilities covered in a light dusting of bluegrass. The combined power of their musicality and songwriting prowess takes this song to new heights.
The folky acoustic guitar opens ‘Strange How’ with a really engaging flow. You can feel the earthy tones of the music slide through you. As the single progresses, the music gains a foot-tapping bounce to the lower guitar line. The whistling flow that rides the guitars bring texture to the music. The different guitar lines weave together to form a really wonderful melodic movement that allows the rather delicate vocals to really shine. Later in the track, there is a faint vibration in the distance that enhances the melancholy of the theme.
While you are pulled into the folky guitars, the vocals bring a new vibe. There is a freshness to the melody that is a little at odds with the sadness and grief of the lyrics and vocals. The lyrics continue the amazing storytelling vibe of No Lonesome while their vocals walk the line between folk and bluegrass. There is so much emotion packed into each word but this is handled with a delicacy that makes it more poignant. As you listen to the track, you are filled with emotions while having an absolute blast to the folk movement of the music.
No Lonesome draws you into the story of ‘Strange How’ while tempering the melancholic emotions of loss with fresh folk tones. The melody has you tapping and swaying to its movement while the vocals are an emotive slide directly into your heart. Through the light contrasts of the track, the emotions are allowed to shine brightly.
Find out more about No Lonesome on their Instagram and Spotify.
