Every so often it feels rather like the music industry is over-run by a trend. A while back you’ll remember that every other person in the world owned a record by Oasis (or Blur), then Buena Vista Social Club, then Amy Winehouse, then Nora Jones… and so the list goes on. One could be forgiven for supposing that, with some decent press and a considerable marketing budget and a good wind behind him, blues/soul revivalist, Nick Waterhouse, might now be ready to join the list of those that set the course of things to come.
After his self-released single ‘Some Place’ received critical acclaim in 2012, Nick went on to release two albums, whilst supporting the likes of Ty Segall and The Growlers, and also appearing at a number of international festivals from Primavera to Montreux Jazz Festival. And his talent is not inconsequential – the track recently sent to us, entitled “It’s Time” (prophetic perhaps!) is a solid neo-soul record. Punctuated by the notable Hammond organ of Dr Lonnie Smith protégé, Will Blades, and a pretty neat, piston-like rhythm section, the track feels like a cleanly executed reject from a Sam Cooke record discovered and re-imagined by The Zombies (it’s soulful, but it’s ‘groovy’ too).
In short, there’s always going to be an audience for this kind of thing… people that are looking for simple, honest, decent music that is comforting for all the right reasons. Rightly or wrongly, whether you like it, your neighbour likes it or your grandma likes it, this is music that will resonate with a lot of people, given the chance.
New album, ‘Never Twice’ is released on 30 September 2016 on the Innovative Leisure label. Find out more about Nick’s music here.
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