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Naminé (AKA Darcy Baylis) is an 18 year old producer hailing from Melbourne, and in many ways, is a music journalist/blog’s dream. It would be easy to become entangled in the web of achievements this young man has accomplished so far, including his two independent EPs and debut 7″, Velvet (Life Aquatic Records, 2011) and finally the release of his debut LP ‘Celestial Love’.
We won’t get too caught up with that, because this is an album which is undeniably as progressive as it is raw. Clocking in at 11-tracks, this Bossman Records released effort spans across a number of genres including R’n’B, Dream/Future Pop and classic House to create a holistic body of work which tells a story the entire way through.
From the cinematic feel of opening ‘Introduction’ to the deep and layered ‘Promise’, where Baylis’s vocals shine through as both considered and euphoria-educing. The sincerely brooding ‘Celestia’ takes a dark turn, whereas the piano-driven and airy ‘Nocturne II’, with it’s signature Naminé sweeping synthesizers bring light back. Personal favorites include a re-worked version of ‘The Train’ which still hits home with it’s vivid storytelling and amazing production and undeniably the inspired collaboration with Collarbones’ Marcus Whale in ‘Haruka’, which brings future-R’n’B to the forefront and reminds us yet again what a versatile and calculated production exists within these songs. It would be easy to focus on a number of factors surrounding this album, but we don’t need to; this is one of the most exciting pop records we’ve heard in a long, long time.
The LP will be launched at Melbourne’s Mercat Basement with support from Michael Ozone on July 6th. Celestial Love is out today through Bossman Records.