You can tell when someone is naturally musically gifted. Everything they do simply sounds so effortless and smooth. There’s nothing worse than when someone is on the verge of being “talented” but doesn’t quite have what it takes. Every sound they produce, whether it be their voice or through an instrument, just sounds stilted and a tiny bit awkward. Daniel Anthony, who is the mastermind behind the solo project Oliver Sol is thankfully one of the talented ones.
I’m sure he has stolen the talent genes from more than one of us who are slightly less than gifted in this department… not that I’m bitter or anything about my inability to produce any sort of sound that won’t make your ears bleed.
Oliver Sol defies genre with his brooding and hypnotising debut single After Dark. Mature and carefully crafted, it’s a track that really tantalises
With one listen to his debut single After Dark you will understand where I’m coming from about his talent. The track holds a brooding and dark essence, but through the strong electronic influences, there are light and upbeat undertones. Teamed with a heavy drum beat and Sol’s haunting and beautiful vocals, there is a real eeriness to the track. There is a beat change just after the two minute mark that really makes it stand out, where a super heavy and intense drum and electro beat takes over. It only sticks around for about 30 seconds, but it’s a real ear pleaser and perfectly complements the slower, deeper vibe the rest of the song houses.
Anthony was raised in a musical family, so he has been playing music for the majority of his life. As a singer first and foremost, it wasn’t until he left school that he started taking music seriously, and after that fateful decision, he has been writing and producing ever since. The base of the track was written and produced in Anthony’s home studio, which was then taken to Samuel K, who co-writes and produces alongside Anthony. It is at K’s Four Tales studio where the track was transformed from a demo into a finished single.
After Dark has such a strong experimental influence and sound that it is hard to pinpoint the track into a specific genre or category… which is definitely not a bad thing. In terms of his influences, Anthony explained “I have a pretty eclectic taste in music and have TONS of influences when writing“.
“From Moderat to Fever Ray and Kanye to Aaliyah. I could go on for days but I guess, just anything that makes me feel something. This project actually started as a throwback to late 90’s Hip Hop and R&B. I know I’m a white guy from the suburbs but that era just had a whole lot to do with shaping me into the musician that I am today so I wanted to put as much of it back into my music.”
Oliver Sol is definitely an artist to keep in your sights. His debut single has set such a high standard for what we can expect from his future work. Giving himself plenty of work to keep occupied with, he will be dropping his next single in about five weeks, will be announcing his first run of shows by the end of the year, and releasing his debut EP The Woods in early 2016.
