The Return of Stephen Foster
Stephen Foster returns with a beautiful new EP that keeps to a deepening and seemingly emotionally dipped approach that lets you feel closer to the artist himself and also allows the songs to feel like they were for you and you alone which is an attribute that I've greatly missed the music for a long time.
The Sun To Rise EP takes a flowing and Lush undertone that's created with much attention to dynamic balance and subtleties that call to you from the ether of the songs and floats them your way with such grace and authenticity that you can't turn away.
Within the span of four songs Stephen is able to give off a heavy-handed but delicate persona and character with each different track and with every song, this wonderful yet creeping feeling of nostalgia starts flowing through your veins.
The EP starts off with the title track and this song has more of a full band feel along with a little bit more electric guitars and a pop undertone that works incredibly well with his vocal Style and at times makes you think of some of those 90s contemporary rock bands that were on the airwaves so often.
One of the most in-depth aspects of this record is the sheer fact that it's got a lot of heart involved and it's coming clearly from someone who is in his zone when it comes to the recording process.
Clearly influenced by some great classic songwriters you can definitely hear a lot of old-school folk and even classic rock seeping into the songs here and there even in the acoustic guitar riffs.
Maybe this is part of where the nostalgia comes from but that could also be because some of the songs make you feel almost like a kid even in the sense of how they were performed in combination with the lyrics of course.
One of my favorite things about this release is the fact that he covers a song I haven't heard in ages called "Chim Chim Cher-ee" which is from a movie I've seen a few times growing up to say the least.
If you've never seen the film Mary Poppins then you've missed out on a classic from generations passed.
His take on the song is definitely original and gives it an almost haunting spin at times because of the progression changes and I don't think I've ever heard anyone even attempt to cover this song before so kudos to Steven for giving this a go because it worked wonderfully.
This is kind of what I like about artists like Steven Foster. Being able to think up something like a cover of a classic song that was in a classic film that I don't think anyone else has even touched and a lot of us have forgotten about.
Just the idea of that occurrence is something that boggles my mind.
Where did you come up with that idea? What gave him that inspiration?
I would assume he was watching the film, the scene came up and he heard this alternate version in his head and then probably had to do it.
Either way, it's extremely well done and shows a lot about how the artist works and how musicians like him are able to create their music with fewer boundaries than some of their predecessors.
This release spans a lot of ground for its four songs and was done with a passion for creation.
This is what music is all about or should be anyway.