23 Fields know how to not just hold your attention, but also how to steal your heart by capturing the essence of simplicity and everything that makes us human. Recovering his sonic endeavour after a 25-year hiatus, the singer-songwriter Step Adams has truly become a force to be reckoned with, especially after further enhancing his art by collaborating with artistic geniuses of violin & drums and percussion like Louise Driver and Jason M Smith. As someone who started venturing in music ages ago, he now arrives with way more wisdom and aims to provide a scoop of it to his fellow listeners as well. Depicting a full-circle moment of his sonic start, his return isn’t just about reviving his past but fine-tuning it to capture the extent of his branches while still holding on to his roots.
A beautiful kaleidoscope of love, life and feelings, this is colorful and has everything we contain in our human blood, in short, more than just an album.
What starts as a mesmerising affair of jazz instruments, the ‘Afrika Nitarudi’ is exactly what the heartbeat of a wandering soul would sound like! Embracing the beauty of the oceans, the comforting breeze, through this track, the author provides the reassurance of return, only when he can, which is followed by the divine sax backdrop. The following tracks ‘The Mary Stanford’ and ‘Where did we go so wrong’ chamoflauge into the themes of travel and reflections one feels as they move ahead in life, shedding their past patterns, habits and people, leaving them behind. Although painful, this journey holds a lot of beauty.
Then one track I was absolutely blown by was ‘Shotgun Bring Me Down’. The melody of the track feels upbeat, energizing and high-spirited, almost inducing an aura of nothing is impossible if you just dare. This track is bold, fierce, and is an electrifying reminder that almost nothing can bring you down. ‘Sidelines’ and ‘You’re Alright’ also have an unimaginable level of depth and surreal energy to them that almost feels like a ray of hope. Reminding you that, instead of being caught in things one cannot change, one must, regardless, live one’s life with peace and gratitude.
‘Sioux’ brings a flavour of sorrow and remorse while uncovering nostalgia, as it’s almost a beautiful apology letter to the album. Through this track, the artist extends a direct, affectionate note to someone he deeply admired but never once got a chance to hold their hand. He tells them, although they don’t know he exists, he still gets to keep them in the back of his memory.
Overall, I feel like this work of folk art speaks volumes about themes of life, love, relationships and the passing by of time, and all in all feels like a warm blanket of human experiences. This is passionate, adorable and everything surrounding how we live, feel and perceive life, and how similar it is despite coming from different walks of life. Coming from a place of pure reflection, I feel like one would miss out by not listening to such awe-inspiring work.
Check out this captivating muse down below-
Discover more muses like this on our Mellow Bliss of Love Playlist-
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