Music Existence Because of Music, We Exist
To say there have been scores of curious indie pop-rock artists coming out of the woodwork lately would be too big an understatement for this critic to make about the state of the American underground, but few that I’ve personally come across this October have demonstrated quite as much efficiency in their craft as singer/songwriters Rich Wyman and Lisa Needham do in the all-new single “Memories of You.” A sample of their unique collaborative chemistry, “Memories of You” is a streamlined look into modern pop/rock with a retro push, cushioned with some of the dreamiest lead vocals I’ve heard in a while, and if you haven’t already, I’d recommend giving it a listen sometime in the near future.
Right out of the gate, I noticed that the relationship between the delicate percussive element in this track and the string play is as essential to the creation of the narrative here as any single verse or shot in the music video for “Memories of You” is. Needham doesn’t beat around the bush with her words, but Wyman also isn’t stingy with his emotive conveyances via the instrumentation in this song, either; there isn’t a stitch of space in this recording that isn’t being utilized as a means of telling the story at hand, allowing for a guitar or piano part to colorize a beat as much as it would contextualize a line of poetry.
As I previously mentioned, the vocal is the key centerpiece of this single and its music video, but I would have liked it to be a little more prominent in the mix. Needham has such an angelically infectious talent for singing, and if it had been given just a touch more presence here, I think “Memories of You” could have qualified as the crown jewel of her counterpart’s recent discography.
They’ve still got plenty of room left to continue growing into this sound, but the intriguing elements in Rich Wyman and Lisa Needham’s “Memories of You” undisputedly trump its few cosmetic conventionalities by leaps and bounds (at least by my critical measurement). After some time in the spotlight, Rich Wyman doesn’t have much to prove as a performer, but I get the feeling – after listening to this track and taking in its equally-captivating music video – that he isn’t about to start resting on his laurels as he embarks on this next phase of his career.
Sabrina Wyrick
