Stray Blue Wake Up & Smile Acoustic Version is something so comforting. It is the sort of EP that does not shout at you with flair or over-production- it simply takes you in, sits down with you and talks to your heart.
The trio of Chania, Greece Stray Blue have never been shy of sincerity and this release is a quiet success. The songs are constructed around acoustic textures and bare bones arrangements and have a delicate quality that is in short supply: unhurried, intimate and contemplative. There is a feeling of the decades of the relationship between the musicians; they have a natural chemistry of close friends who complete each others sentences with sound.
The lead song Wake Up & Smile is cozy and close. The way Nick Anastasakis sings sounds like talking rather than singing, it is close to home, down to earth and heartfelt. George Athanas (bass) and George Papazoglou (drums) leave the space between them and the song can breathe. It is a song that makes you feel seen and quietly empowered, without ever making you smile.
The song that goes deeper into introspection is called Moody Sky, and it is accompanied by the moving cello of Yoed Nir. It is cinematic in nature as it has an undertone of longing that is still felt even after the song is done. The cello played by Nir provides an emotional touch which enhances the voice of Nick in a beautiful way and forms a very emotional mood of quiet vulnerability.
The two songs are a contemplative experience, together they become a journey that is both bright and dark, strong and introspective. This EP is not only pleasant to listen to, but pleasant to feel. Stray Blue does not necessarily have to follow the trend, and that is what makes their music stand out. Their capacity to relate on the basis of honesty, melody and emotion is eternal. Wake Up & Smile Acoustic Version is a kind of reminder that the quietest voices are sometimes the loudest.
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