“Surface” is the latest single by Dom Malin, a Birmingham-based singer-songwriter. It’s his first single in 2024 that serves as an adequate follow-up to “River,” “Fever,” “The Sea,” and “All I Know,” four exceptional compositions this highly creative artist released last year. Soundwise, Dom Malin relies upon the fundamentals of alternative rock sound, but you’ll unquestionably notice how many different but complementary music genres found their way into this fine piece of sonic artistry. Don’t be surprised if you stumble upon sonic ingredients borrowed from indie rock, indie pop, pop rock, and other similar genres. He uses these additional elements as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details to uplift his latest single on an entirely new level, while simultaneously remaining loyal to the primary sonic direction.
As soon as you press play, you’ll hear that Dom Malin invested nothing but brilliant ideas and exceptional musicianship. His outstanding vocal performance serves as a centerpiece, emphasizing all the segments and instrumentations by perfectly balancing low, mid, and high notes. It’s also good to mention that these calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal vocal harmonies guide listeners from scratch to finish, but also provide some complexity to the song. The guitar shine with marvelous themes, melodies, harmonies, chord progressions, and leads. These sonic maneuvers offer an adequate backdrop for all the vocal articulations, and it’s nearly mindblowing how Malin’s voice and all the instrumentations perfectly match.
You’ll also hear how the equally complex, vividly hearable, warm-sounding basslines provide more than necessary heaviness, depth, and clarity, but also act as a binding element between guitars and drums. It’s fascinating how this particular instrument suits guitars with all those cleverly assembled notes. This song wouldn’t sound this good without exceptional drumming performance based upon moderate, well-accentuated beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatic. These rhythmic sequences dictate groove and pace, but also keep the remainder of the instrumentations in line.
Dom Malin flawlessly arranged the entire song structure, so you’ll notice how every segment, detail, and nuance shine in the mix. All layers of orchestrations are there for a very good purpose, and that’s one of the reasons why “Surface” sounds this good. It’s one of those songs that perfectly captures the modern alternative rock sound, but also pays homage to the late eighties and early nineties music. Dom Malin knows how to write, compose, arrange, records, and produce his songs, and “Surface” exemplifies his dedication to the craft. You should put this track on your radar as soon as possible, because it’s one of the best modern alternative rock songs you’ll hear this year. The single is available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss it!
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