Print & Features Editor Ash Sutton reviews Naomi Dawes’ cinematic new single ‘Come Down’
‘Come Down’, the newest single by Birmingham local artist Naomi Dawes was released as a bid farewell to July this year. The song released as a teaser to the next phase of music by Dawes who is known for her indie/hip-hop style. I was lucky enough to hear ‘Come Down’ for the first time live, however the recorded version holds up spectacularly, something I believe can be hard. The song doesn’t depend on the instrumental but instead on the ethereal vocals of Dawes herself.
The song is on the slow side, creating an echoing and eerie effect to the music. A tone that fits perfectly with the vampiric genre that Dawes seems to be moving into with her music. She achieves her goals entirely, the song being one that would fit perfectly as an intro to a supernatural show. All of her music contains a similar cinematic vibe which reminds me of the likes of Ruelle, a rarity in modern music, but something that is beautifully refreshing.
The song’s introduction cleverly uses breathing work to move into the vocals, the use of which has become a new favourite music trope of mine since Billie Eilish’s ‘LUNCH’. In this song in particular, it does excellently to set the tone of the song and depict the predatory nature of the narrator in the story.
‘Come Down’ relays the aftermath of a night out while adding a vampirical layer.
Dawes clearly has a talent for lyrical narrative. ‘Come Down’ relays the aftermath of a night out while adding a vampirical layer. In this, she does well to flip the predator and prey roles to empower women and give them the bite that is missing from so many portrayals in pop culture. The mediative quality of the melody and the severity in the delivery each line only enforces this empowerment.
There is a clear potential for extraordinary success and ‘Come Down’ only does more to prove that.
Considering Dawes is a small artist, the quality and talent of her music is beyond professional. There is a clear potential for extraordinary success and ‘Come Down’ only does more to prove that. Not to mention, the absolute beauty of the cover art for the single. It portrays a digital art portrait of Naomi, her shoulders and upper back covered in scratch marks and scars. This combined with the purple aesthetic, it cannot be denied that Dawes knows exactly what she wants in terms of what her music portrays and achieves this goal to its full extent.
I am ecstatic to see what Naomi Dawes brings as she explores the supernatural in her music, and very strongly suggest anybody interested in narrative storytelling through music and the fantasy genre should check out ‘Come Down’.
Naomi Dawes plays The Night Owl on September 11th 2024.
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