By Ismail Ibrahim, NYU Florence student
Florence’s Fresh Yo! Label has been independently releasing music since 2010, not sticking to any genre. Their releases range from Hip-Hop, folk, and their newest release, Physical Law by Nularse, defies categorization. Nularse combines acoustic guitar with crisp electronic instrumentation, and warm vocal delivery, which creates music that hints at dream pop, indie rock, and electronica. While some songs, such as the opener “Say Hello”, are melancholy, the collection of songs on the whole has a very upbeat ‘summery’ feeling to it. Some of the tracks are pretty dancey, such as “Oh Song”, my personal favorite. There are six tracks total that are very cleanly produced. The meticulous attention to detail is apparent here, each instrument clearly occupies its space in the mix, and each track has its own artwork. Some of the songs, such as “Physical Law”, feel bland and overly repetitive, but they are minor hiccups in what is overall a solid debut release for a young artist. The album’s closer, ‘Madresia’, shows an influence of Dream Pop bands like M83, and the last sounds of the album are a pleasant guitar chord and bell chime, slowly dissolving.
Highlights: Say Hello, Oh Song, Madresia
Least Favorite: Physical Law.
Mapping Contemporary Florence 