Brit Royal - Change (2017)

Artwork by Blayze Reid

OFFICIAL PAGE: http://www.britroyalmusic.com/
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/britroyalmusic/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/BritRoyalMusic

SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/britroyalmusic/change-dream-mix/s-33kjH

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AgE1e-Rbyk&feature=youtu.be

Some artists are just old souls. They emerge on the scene fully formed, for the most part, and the boundless depths of their art do much more than hint at promise and potential. Brit Royal is such an act. The brother duo of Mazin and Kais Oliver are hot on the heels of their recent full length release London and the single “Change” reveals them to be exceptional songwriters who have an ear for revealing performances and aren’t afraid to invest their work with wisdom shocking from those so young. Their talents greatly benefit from working alongside renowned modern production and songwriting masters like Mikal Blue and Dishwalla’s JR Richards. Their own vision and the influence of such pivotal figures helps them flesh out this fantastic single into something even finer – it’s a track older listeners can relate to without deeming it a guilty pleasure and one young fans can hear and feel a tight connection to.

They refrain from embracing big top production values and studio confections in an effort to get their material over. Instead, the song’s arrangement pins its success on some richly melodic and fluid piano playing that casts its own spell but, likewise, hopes to complement the vocals. It manages to do thanks, in no small part, to the space it allows the song to breathe and the vocals falling in all the right places. Another important factor in its success is the focus it shows. Brit Royal never belabor things too much with needless flashes and flairs of hollow virtuosity – instead, every note and word of “Change” serves a purpose and dodges anything even remotely smacking of extraneous nonsense. To carry off such bare bones beauty is impressive even from veteran performers but, from young men like this, the effect is slightly revelatory.

The vocals are bell-clear and show off phrasing that seeks to make use of the fine material rather than attempting to get itself over at the songwriting’s expense. The attention to detail at work here deepens the song’s sentiments and gives it an added humanity that makes the words all the more impressive. The well-honed instincts that go into the music working so well also work magic on a lyric that doesn’t waste a single syllable, let alone any words. The Oliver Brothers get to the heart of the song’s experience, weathering the changes that life brings and emerging deeper and more empathetic as a result of your survival, in a way that every listener can understand. Their writing never relies on melodramatic or clichéd effects – instead, it has a plain-spoken eloquence that is sure to touch all but the most cynical minds. Songs like this are the stuff posterity is made of. The timeless strengths at work in “Change” seem to come quite naturally to the Olivier Brothers and there’s a cathartic aura surrounding the performance that will satisfy the duo’s audience.

Written by: Charles Hatton