Navah Sea - “If God Speaks”
Photo by Ruxi Adam
British producer and songwriter Phil Simmonds, aka Navah Sea, explores the idea of losing hope and questioning faith in the song, “If God Speaks.”
The song begins with an organic and experimental loop, which consists of delayed guitar, some distorted percussion, and what appears to be a crunchy vocal sample. It’s just the right concoction to capture a listener’s interest until, moments later, the song begins to take its true form, guiding the vocals into their rightful position. This is the point where we fell in love with “If God Speaks.” We’re not quite sure if Simmonds drew any sort of inspiration from the vocal stylings of Justin Vernon, both through Bon Iver and Volcano Choir, but the manner in which these lyrics are delivered to the ear are absolutely celestial.
As the guitar loop continues, a piano bangs out chords, offering some foundational rhythm, with drums making an appearance, at first, for accentual purposes, then becoming part of the force that moves the song forward. “If God Speaks” builds slowly, much like all of the life events that gradually happen before one ultimately questions their faith in anything– including themselves. As the song crescendos, the layers bring a bit of chaos, finally climaxing with a gritty guitar solo before retreating into a more calm conclusion. Our words will never do it any justice– you must hear it for yourself:
“If God Speaks” is the title track from Navah Sea’s EP and we’ll be spending the day with it. Feel free to join us.
-TM