Nick Mulvey looks towards his “interbeing” on Star Nation, the first taste of his upcoming album, New Mythology.
Britain singer/songwriter Nick Mulvey has undertaken some major life changes. He’s become a father, navigated a pandemic, and created a vulnerable, inward-looking third album.
On his leading single Star Nation, Mulvey “weaves ancient teachings (Hopi Prayer/Nyingma Buddism)” into his lyrics to create a stirring piece of reflection.
With glitchy production nods to Bon Iver and fingerpicked vulnerability reminiscent of Sufjan Stevens, Nick Mulvey’s Star Nation is a strong example of contemporary folk at its most potent and accessible.
Mulvey’s voice carves out a space for reflection, delivering moments of clarity for our tumultuous era: “In these times of death and rebirth, we live, heal and serve”. The merge of alt-pop and folk also lightly brushes against rap, with Star Nation’s rhythm resting on an unobtrusive trap beat. Even the gentlest of tunes, it seems, can benefit from the 808’s trend. If used tastefully, like so here.
For the music video, director Kate Bellm shoots picturesque footage of children swimming and adventuring at a coastline; diving, campfires, and everything in between. The “ode to growing up on island life” is inspired by her son, Sage. The video is romantic and dreamy, to say the least. It holds a quaint emotional tilt; a human escape into nature, like the stories found in the muscular sentences of a Tim Winton novel.
Star Nation feels like a culmination of everything Mulvey has been offering since First Mind (2014). At its worst, it’s an inspired breath of fresh air. At its best, it’s a telling look into one’s own soul.
Listen to Star Nation by Nick Mulvey below:
