As he nears the 30th anniversary of his very first release, (1993 album 'Jammin' With The Cats'), blues musician Nathan Cavaleri is exploring other sonic textures has he expands into the world of indie rock.
This progression will be documented in Nathan's new studio album that will arrive in 2023, shadowed by four single releases.The first of these teaser tracks is the delightfully cruisy 'Cool Changes', a laidback ride of smooth folk-rock with a beat that'll snuggle right inside your eardrum and stay there for weeks.
There's still flashes of Nathan's bluesy roots with a repeated guitar riff throughout that's saturated with all the bruised feels. Then there's Cavaleri's throaty, coarse vocals that coo like a songbird searching for a calming sense of tranquility.
Overall 'Cool Changes' sits somewhere between Dope Lemon and 90s-'00s indie lords like Smog, Iron & Wine and Elliott Smith.
Ahead of the song's release tomorrow (11 November), scenestr is ecstatic to premiere the 'Cool Changes' music video today. Enjoy.
"Blues has always been my home, but as the years went on it could only sometimes allow me to express what I wanted to express, and that's when I started to venture out and experiment with different styles," Nathan says.
"It's hard to escape my blues roots – you're going to hear it through everything – but I think you'd probably struggle to put my next album in the blues genre on the shelf. But the blues is there; you can still hear it."
Self-produced with additional production and direction from Grammy Award-winning producer/ engineer Andrew Scheps (Adele, Red Hot Chili Peppers), 'Cool Changes' was also inspired by Cavaleri's passion for surfing.
Although he's "not a great surfer or anything," he admits, "I get so much out of it, and there are a lot of similarities between surfing, playing music and performing as well.
"You've gotta go with the flow; you're essentially collaborating with nature. If I'm struggling, it feels like I'm on a hamster wheel and I'm exhausting myself. But when I'm having a good surf, it's because I'm in a state of surrender."
It made sense then to continue the surfing theme for the creative direction for the song's dreamy music video, which follows two female surfers – both from the band Tuppaware Party – on a road trip to surf the breaks of Stanwell Park and Bellambi beaches out Wollongong way.
Enlisting a great videographer was essential and Mikey Conlon (Xavier Rudd) perfectly captured the action that naturally unfolded on the day of the shoot.
"I remember the editor flicking back a rough cut and I went, 'this is awesome!'. It's everything that I imagined in my head and it all happened just through going with the flow and surrendering, which was apt."
Nathan plans to tour nationally in 2023.
