The single cover art has somewhat a very retro feel, thanks to the clothing
choices of a metallic button up with cream pants used in the image. The image
depicts Thomston falling from the sky, which is a literal translation of the
opening lyrics “When you fell from the sky we all stopped and stood outside to
wash our clothes, but baby, we got soaked”. Not a flat-standard image, it
looks as though it has been hit by acid rain, with chemicals melting portions
of the image; a reference to the title of the track.
Starting out, it is more of an acoustic track; composed of a few repeated,
simple guitar plucks throughout the whole track. This minimal use of
instruments really pushes his voice to the forefront and the choir-like vocals
that come in, boosts the effects of the vocals even further. Thomston really
does have an extraordinary voice. Acid Rain appears to be about reflection
and moving on, lyrically, and receives the change in beat in the second half of
the track really gives Acid Rain power. Letting go is the principal theme being
pushed and there is a sense of freedom that comes with it. The track flows so
well - it’s so simple, and yet, so complete.
With the release of the single, Thomston also released a video, which reflects
the track and cover art well. There’s a sense of nature and freedom in the
video, especially with use of vast land and sky shots, which provide a sense of
clarity. The location makes the ground look like water, but it’s clearly not;
more like salt in appearance and texture. The defining aspect of the video is
the shaky hand-shot snippets incorporated amongst the more high-definition
professional shots. Giving the song a more personal touch, as if Thomston was
sharing a home video with the viewer. This video seems simple at first, but
with the way in which Thomston sings and incorporates a range of different
shots, it also packs a lot of emotion into it. It is a beautifully crafted
piece of work.
I highly recommend listening to this track whilst watching the video first. If
you can’t, then definitely give the track a listen anyway. It is such a good
track and whether we hear from him again soon or not, I’m sure the wait will be
worth every minute of it.
Young singing sensation Thomston was given a year by his parents to make his mark in music or go to university. Today, he is making an impact globally with his own brand of pop-R&B-alt-electronic, writes Lydia Jenkin.
He seems like a fairly typical 19-year-old as he bounds into the room, full of energy, cracking open a Red Bull, chatting about sneakers. But the unassuming appearance of sandy-haired Thomas Stoneman, better known as Thomston, belies his rather extraordinary achievements.
Despite having only decided to work towards a career in music at the end of 2013, he's already released two critically acclaimed EPs, had more than 10 million plays on Spotify, found himself nominated as a top 20 finalist for the Apra Silver Scroll award this year, and been selected as the only New Zealand artist in MTV's Brand New competition.