Nyree Huyser has endured life’s challenges with vulnerability and candour on her new debut album ‘Fixing Heads and Chasing Tails’.
Fans might remember Huyser from her appearance on season 12 of The Voice, in which she made it to the final three as part of Rita Ora’s team.
Now, she’s poised to take centre stage, delivering a 12-track project that transcends genres and tackles topics of mental health, self-doubt and ultimate fulfilment.
The project opens with the glittering piano keys of ‘By The River’, a stirring ballad that rightfully forefronts Huyser’s commanding voice.
While the production here is blissfully sparse, save for the angelic whisper of gospel harmonies, ‘By The River’ provides ample room for Huyser to deliver transfixing vocal runs and showcase her unmatched range.
She flits from anthemic belts to heavenly riffs with finesse, almost pulling focus from the track’s equally evocative lyrics.
Here she sings of escaping the world’s conflicts and “hopeless faces” to find solace by the river, showcasing a knack for intimate storytelling that continues on ‘Rise’.
Also adorned in stirring piano keys, this second track introduces whirring synths and driving percussion to soundtrack Huyser’s tale of triumph.
Carried by tropical electro-pop beats, ‘Rise’ displays the versatility of Huyser’s voice, which is elastic and stirring enough to traverse genres.
With vocals like Huyser’s, no sound is off limits. The singer tries her hand at drum and bass pop on ‘Liberate’ — a nightclub heater that sees Huyser’s dip into sultrier corners of her range — before ‘Worth It’ brings the nostalgia of 90s R&b à la Jennifer Lopez.
EDM gets its time to shine on the resplendent ‘Gold Dust’, and ‘Death Of Me’ flows like an angsty aughties pop-punk cut. Through it all, Huyser’s pen reigns supreme.
She recalls toxic former flames on ‘Death Of Me’ and revels in her own bad-assery on ‘Worth It’, before farewelling a partner on the horn-assisted ‘I Could Never’.
Huyser’s efforts culminate on album closer ‘Picture’ book, a slice of pop-rock that brims with western licks and a message of self-confidence.
It bookends the journey taken on ‘Fixing Heads and Chasing Tails’, a debut that marks Huyser’s arrival as an unmissable force.
Listen to Nyree Huyser’s debut album ‘Fixing Heads and Chasing Tails’ below.
