Nuke the Soup’s single and music video “Oceans and Mountains”

Born of an unsophisticated songcraft but decidedly tethered to the tree of folk-rock at its most focused and melodically on-point, Nuke the Soup’s single and music video “Oceans and Mountains” is an easygoing tune from start to finish. Simple pop harmonies find a bucolic backdrop in this track, which endearingly recalls elements of an old school folk identity that had less to do with political themes than it did the nature of the human experience. It’s a positive piece of honest rhythm and rhymes, and in 2020, it’s indicative of a sound that has been mostly missing from the charts (so far).

I love the strings in this track, but there’s really no solid instrumental focus in the master mix – every element is playing an important part in making the harmonies as heavenly as they undisputedly are. Nuke the Soup aren’t feeling the need to fill the empty spaces behind them with a lot of useless synthetic virtuosity; even the unoccupied part of this mix contributes to the overall mood of the music, creating a sense of juxtaposition that expounds the lyrical theme brilliantly. The foundation of this single is a singular melody, but never is there an instance in which “Oceans and Mountains” feels compositionally lopsided.

More on Nuke the Soup: http://www.nukethesoup.com/

I hadn’t heard of this unit prior to checking out their most recent release and its pleasant music video, but I’d definitely be interested in hearing more from Nuke the Soup after taking-in the charms they have to offer here. “Oceans and Mountains” presents us with a brooding songwriter in one Mark Davison who doesn’t try and steal any of the thunder away from his backing band – his tightly disciplined attack is simply good enough to do so whether he intends to or not. I like his style, and with this crew surrounding him, I think we’ll hear plenty more gems like this in the future.

Nicole Killian