It isn’t just the absence of a drummer that creates Naïmah’s deft and often delicate sound, although that lack of rigidity allows their music to move in a way that wouldn’t be possible with a strict and predictable metronomic structure. It is perhaps the fact that, without beats dictating the course, the music seems to ebb and flow through gentle dynamics, moving at will through space and atmospheres in a less than predictable fashion, that makes it sound so unique.
Having had my first taste of the band via the gorgeous single “Say Something,” I was forewarned that this album would be something special, but even those dulcet tones didn’t prepare me for just what a finessed and floating and fantastic experience this would be.
“Blue Moon’s” subtle energies seem to come from the pace and poise of the lilting guitar, giving the vocals the perfect platform to land with surprising force. “I’m Leaving Home” underlines just how vital the brass sound is in Naïmah’s songs, moving between roles —sometimes as a lead instrument, sometimes acting as a second voice, and sometimes just as a subtle and supple sonic wash to color the soundscape.
“Radice Nera” speaks of the worldly nature of the band’s sound, forged from echoes of Mariachi music and Latin spice, Mediterranean landscape and Mexican skies, it is seductive and earthy, evoking dusty landscapes and the heat of the sun, and again proving that an contagious groove can be built from the most understated of sounds.
“Flowing in Vein” is, for me, the heart of the album, a heady blend of desert blues and arabesque vibes, soulfulness and melancholia, a cinematic and sensational experience whose sophisticated and spacious nature really sums up so much about the band.
If you’re tired of conventional modern music, if you feel that the templates have grown stale, or if you have a hankering for music made in a way that feels simultaneously traditional and revolutionary, this album, and indeed, this band is definitely for you. Actually, any discerning music fan will love every moment of this outstanding album.
