New York (US) artist, Chapell has just released his latest single, Gold, and we’ve thoroughly enjoyed several listens here at the Send Me Your Ears studio today.
Before we even hit play, we were drawn to this track simply because of the cool description that Alan Chapell gives about the subject matter; “This song is sort of a historical fiction. A what if — what if Id never gotten my shit together and stayed in Stamford CT as a fall down drunk. And I found out about an ex girlfriend who was well off and living in NYC – and I hitched a ride to
surprise her. Awkward….”
The moment we did get around to pressing play, we were instantly transported to 80s pop heaven. Starting confidently with a great guitar solo with some lovely delays and reverbs on it we were enthralled immediately.
We love how, almost straight away, the drums change up their rhythms, even before the vocals come in. Just to let you know that you’re in for a fun ride and to be prepared for the unexpected.
When the vocals come in, they’re strong, confident, clear in the mix and reminded us somewhat of Johnny Hates Jazz (Shattered Dreams for example). Chapell’s vocals are easy to hear and very smooth and characterful. This kind of nostalgic 80s retro is right up our street!
Gold has a super-catchy chorus and one which we can see being sung back at radio stations across the US through this latter part of the summer. We love the layered vocals and harmonies that come in for the choruses. This is a really commercial sounding track with some fantastic rise and fall.
With some really classy incidental guitar moments and a couple of well constructed guitar solos, this track ticks every single box for us. With a beautifully executed and well written structure that keeps leading the listener back to that all important chorus, Gold is a superb piece of work.
From a production perspective, a slight boost across the high mids and highs centred around 7-8kHz would give the song a little extra presence and brightness. An additional high shelf boost in the top octave would add to the brightness as well as giving the track more ‘air’ – something that would fit this style of music perfectly.
For lovers of 80s nostalgia, this is a high quality track that deserves attention. Chapell has managed to produce a track that sounds fresh and current, but still takes a very authentic leaf out of 1980s rock/pop. We can’t wait to hear what’s next from this talented US artist.