Voices Carry

posted in: Music News

Natalie Major is, if anything, well traveled. Raised in Chicago, the singer-songwriter moved to New York at nineteen, and currently resides in Los Angeles. But not all roads lead to major metropolitan areas. In Good Intentions she warns that the ones paved with good intentions can sometimes lead to hell. The song is a nice introduction to Major’s powerful vocals. Pared-down instrumentation”just quiet synths and drums”puts her torchy, soulful voice front and center. On Beautiful Life, Major could be Natasha Bedingfield, singing strident, feel-good mantras against shuffling, acoustic-laden pop. But on Monster she shows her bad side. Chunky, distorted guitars set an aggressive tone without eroding the song’s mainstream pop sheen. I’ve never really seen this side of me / Don’t know how to make it stop, she sings. Our opinion? Don’t.