Light It Up is the latest track from Matilda Shakes, a band hailing from the steel city and rising through the musical ranks. If you haven’t already, now is as good a time as any to search through their back catalogue before listening to their newest banger. It’s insanely good once again.
Light It Up starts with what sounds like static, giving it the feel of when you put a record on and it first gets going. It’s a familiar trope that starts off subtle before usually always launching into a big energy track. This one is no exception, and when it gets into the track proper, the instruments sound full and lively.
When the vocals join they clearly have an effect over them that makes it feel like everything is being put through a megaphone. This doesn’t relent at any point, and it feels murky and blends with the instruments, so feels as one. It’s even more impactful as it feels like every lyric is being shouted and each word is being projected and hurled at the listener. It really emphasises the rockiness of the track.
Matilda Shakes are obviously a talented bunch and there are aspects in the song that really highlight this. One of these factors is the difference between the first and second verse that give the song something interesting to focus on. The vocals and the guitar remain the same in both, but the drums play at half speed in the second verse which creates a unique rhythm and variation. It gives Light It Up just something more the same sound continuously whilst still keeping it recognisably similar.
When the song reaches its bridge section it does a great job of ramping everything up just a little bit more before it goes into an outro. It’s a classic way to conclude a track, but Matilda Shakes do it effortlessly well and lead the song out with some cool vocalising and an epic final sound.
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