Nick Shane is one of Dundee’s musical treasures. An integral part of the local music scene, he has helped sustain the delicate yet crucial pulse of authentic songwriting since 2013. At this start of this festive period, he returns with another stunning single anticipated to be cherished by many.
The story behind Én Riverside is one of riveting emotion. Written after a separation, Shane details his experience of moving to Dundee’s riverside and reflecting on a new start. It’s the perfectly introspective folk ballad to bring peace at the end of a troubling time.
Shane eases listeners into the track with a bright fingerpicked guitar line beneath a deep cello melody and gentle licks of piano. It’s melancholic but hopeful, resting in every feeling of his bittersweet situation. The cello and piano take a backseat as Shane’s thick-with-soul vocal pieces together the breakup with tender metaphors… “you and me/space and time/I always knew you’d make a wonderful wife.”
Following the tear-jerking intro, the song migrates into a chirpier light as the instrumentation picks up.
Brushed drums and a flourish of percussion replicate a new-found chordal rhythm from the guitar, while the hearty cello returns to create a radiating warmth. Each part ebbs and flows throughout, never too overwhelming, and coming together to accent the most poetic lyrics.
Én Riverside feels like the invaluable embrace of a life-long friend through a strained situation; knowing, genuine, and much needed. The song – out December 15th – will feature as part of Nick Shane’s upcoming seventh studio album in Summer 2024.
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