Warm production and relatable, quietly mixed vocals – an upbeat energy and thoughtful, often romanticised lyrics. UK songwriter and musician Dave Vamfer reflects on love and life with playful creativity, throughout Find The Sound.
Re-worked and re-released, Find The Sound first emerged in 2020, but now features three alternative versions and a fresh track sequence. Dave Vamfer balances poetic songwriting and simple melodies, with a nostalgic dance sound and energy, to ultimately encapsulate the search and creative freedom of finding the sound.
Keep On Coming EDM is the opener and precisely the energised romantic longing described above. A choir of voices helps break up the intimate contemplations of our protagonist, while this keys, synths, beat and electric guitar combination works hard to keep the positive vibes sky high.
Ten tracks feature throughout the album, including a unique and beautiful version of English folk song Scarborough Fair. Sometimes a more mellow arrangement backs up Dave’s guy-next-door vocals, such as throughout the heartbroken story of Because We’re Ending – an acoustic backdrop and lightly programmed rhythm. Elsewhere, the music is celebratory and bright – heard mildly for So Happy, but all the more notably for the lightness and unique acoustic set-up of Waiting a Lifetime. Here the profound wonder of the lyrics really connects, and a catchy melody united helps make the track an easy stand-out.
Versatility is crucial but subtle – the voice and writing, the raw recording style, making certain to hold tight to the threads of artistry that are Dave Vamfer’s sound. Consider though, the easy jazz shuffle and keys of If There’s a Purpose?– a backstreet café feeling apt to accompany these broadly relevant musings.
Then afterwards, the blues-rock swagger and passion of Dark Dawn Blues is quick to lift the mood, contrasting the darkness of the lyrics with the sheer confidence and swagger of the blues-rock aura and honky-tonk backdrop.
During the final quarter, the title-track Find The Sound offers lo-fi old-school keys and a shoulder-swaying instrumental groove with a twist of jazz saxophone. Then we get the melancholic Reprise of Because We’re Ending, bringing things back down to the ground, before the bolder upbeat and joyful anthem Tricks of Life Medley injects one last highlight; wrapping things up with lyrical wisdom and the colourful vibrancy of a full-rock and jazz-kissed soundscape.
A great way to finish, and a genuinely unique, honest and nostalgic album in full.
Find Dave Vamfer via his Website.
