There are listeners who “subscribe to” (or, as the term has been changed to, Follow) my weekly “Now Hear This Entertainment” podcast. And on that show, I’m often heard (a) acknowledging people who – yes, eleven-and-a-half years into the show – are just finding it for the first time, but then also, (b) recognizing (and thanking) those who’ve been with me for quite some time.
I will go out of my way to say on the podcast when I really like a song by that guest. I will add, “It’s not that I don’t like the songs by the other guests. It’s just that when I hear something I really like, I want to go out of my way to say so.”
It’s a similar script here on the weekly blog. Those of you who have been reading my posts “on the regular” are abundantly aware that it takes something pretty special for me to deviate from the typical content I write about. More specifically, for me to instead write a song review – especially since I’m literally putting my name on it – the track has to really stand out.
For an artist to pull that off twice with me is an even bigger feat. (I believe the only one who’d done so to-date was Ariana Colletti.)
But when “Somewhere In the Static” came across my virtual desk, I had to admit The Quiet North into that exclusive group, what with having previously written a glowing review of “I Create In Color Now” – exactly five weeks ago today, in fact.
The sophomore effort too is nicely done. The artist has definitely found his lane. This is a good pop song that isn't bubble gum pop and is, dare I say, a wee bit more mature. Some good (chest voice) vocal spots during it too. I also liked that he got right to the vocals. Too many songs have been sent to me with an unnecessarily long musical intro. The synth is nicely done too, in that it starts off hinting at an 80s sound before quickly and cleverly coming around to a present-day tone that nicely complements the vocals.
Not surprisingly, The Quiet North clearly is getting more than just my attention. “Somewhere In the Static” has only been out for four weeks yet already has well over 23 thousand streams on Spotify alone.
It can only be helping him and the song that when you tap to listen to it on Spotify, there are the lyrics, which are going to help draw people in. On top of that, I did look up and find that a one-minute clip from the new release is available as a ‘sound’ to use on TikTok.
Lyrics on Spotify and having your song available for TikTok users is a lot of what I was talking about three weeks ago in my blog titled, “Just That One Little Extra Something.” Maybe making sure your track gets on TikTok is what makes the difference in someone finding it. Perhaps guaranteeing that Spotify users can follow along with the words to your song is what pulls a listener across the finish line to say, “Yes, I like this song,” and maybe they add it to a playlist and/or share it with a friend.
Of course it does always come back to the song itself. Is it strong lyrically, melodically, and – as I feel is the case with “Somewhere In the Static” – does it, in fact, have a nice commercial feel to it where you can easily picture it being played on radio, being used in film/TV placement, or heck, even being played overhead in a restaurant where a patron like me might pull out my phone to Shazam it because it’s sound is catchy enough that I want to know who/what I’m hearing?
It’s also worth noting that that the artist has taken the less is more approach here. With a running time just seven seconds shy of three minutes, it’s not going to scare radio away due to going on and on and on – something that sometimes is done unnecessarily. And seeing as how “I Create in Color Now” came in at “just” 3:19, I’d say that the artist has paid particular attention to the sweet spot in terms of length.
It's tough to have to follow a successful debut release, but The Quiet North has done exactly that with this newest release. Whether he can go three-for-three remains to be seen, but for the time being, there’s reason to take a step back and feel good about his start.
For more than twenty years I have been helping indie music artists, authors, actors, entrepreneurs, podcasters, filmmakers, small business owners, and more. What challenges are you having in your creator career that I can lend some insight to? Connect with me so you can take advantage of all my experience, and I can help and keep you moving forward.