31 Dec 2024
Blake - Single Review: You Don't Decide
07 Jul 2022 // A review by Danica Bryant
Hailing from Queenstown, soulful pop artist Blake’s new single You Don’t Decide is a breath of fresh air amongst today’s highly produced and often overly busy commercial material. Yet another splendid product of Covid lockdowns, it’s a whispered discovery of self-assertion, which reaches to the depths of human experience and compacts its realisations in a beautiful yet clearly comprehensible way.
You Don’t Decide draws listeners in with Blake’s careful storytelling and a production focus on how percussion can smoothly build and change dynamics. Gentle, understated verses butterfly into wide open choruses. But the song’s finale is surprisingly muted, softening into a lo-fi style performance which reiterates the power of Blake’s message not to take mistreatment and toxic behaviour from others. The influence of similarly moody pop artists, such as Holly Humberstone and Claire Rosinkranz, shines through in the steady hum of guitar beneath Blake’s honest vocal delivery and direct lyricism.
A first listen to this track may make it appear unassuming, but its surprisingly sticky chorus and dreamy alt-pop production will undoubtedly have you coming back for more. This is a gorgeous release that solidifies Blake’s presence as one to watch.
Rating:
( 5 / 5 )
About Blake
Transitioning from drum and bass, Blake found her niche in alt-pop. Her music blends a love for soulful artists with a knack for crafting genuine pop songs, resulting in a sound rich in depth and authenticity. Blake's self-released tracks have totalled 250,000 streams. Unafraid of vulnerability, Blake's candid personality shines through in her music, articulating personal experiences with honesty. Recent highlights include support for her track Red Hearts from Triple J Unearthed and a feature on ABC's breakfast show. Her EP Skeptical also received acclaim, with the track CPU peaking at number 11 on New Zealand's Radioscope Most Added chart and airtime across BBC Introducing London.
Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for Blake
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