…fading herself out, JOHANNA SAMUELS – Nature’s Way
Johanna Samuels – Nature’s Way [Excelsior!, LP] is available at Apple Music, Bandcamp, Tidal.
by Walter Price
LA-based singer-songwriter Johanna Samuels really knows how to let a lyric breath its reality, as her recent single, “Nature’s Way”, will attest. A track that appears to be a tale of finding balance within in the do I or will wait while you figure your shit out scenario. Like it or not, we’ve all been in this sort of conundrum. The way Samuels tells her side of the I-will-be-heard story, you get the sense that the songwriter is a bit more over it than she wants to admit.
It’s not like I’m sitting here alone
Doing dumb shit on the phone
Trying to kiss you through the screen
Trying to see you and not be seen
It’s not like I’m waiting
Completely indifferent
Can’t you tell the difference?
And if I was waiting
It would be cause
A girl’s used to fading herself out
I’ve got a funny thing about
Saying what I want aloud
You push it so far down below
It’s here with its hands around my throat
It’s not like I’m waiting
I’m fading…
The ‘nobody one puts Baby in the corner’ storyline is soundtracked by a timeless indie rock arrangement provided by the brilliant players Harrison Whitford, Garrett Lang, Sam Griffin Owens, and those indelible harmonies made even sweeter by Olivia Kaplan. All and all, this is a song that’ll have fans of Liz Phair, Cat Power, and Beth Orton adding it to their favorite I’m-not-coming-in second playlists.
“Nature’s Way” is taken from Samuels’ forthcoming LP, ‘Excelsior!’, expected May 14th via Mama Bird Recording Company. And you can stream the single and see the heart-felt, fan, friends, family-filled music video (directed by Matt Kazman), now at the GTC.
JOHANNA SAMUELS – Nature’s Way
Also, make sure to check out the single, “All Is Fine“
Article cover photo by Ellyn Jameson
Written by Johanna Samuels and Olivia Kaplan
Rhodes and Vocals by Johanna Samuels
Guitar by Harrison Whitford and Sam Griffin Owens
Bass by Garret Lang
Harmonies by Olivia Kaplan
Produced and Mixed by Sam Griffin Owens
Recorded at Flying Cloud Studios in West Shokan, NY
Mastered by Heba Kadry
Directed, shot & edited by Matt Kazman
Featuring (in order of appearance Courtney Marie Andrews, Dara Bankole, Maddy Baltor, Leica Lightbulb, Olivia Kaplan, Shauna Davis, A.O. Gerber, Erin Rae, Melanie Buenrostro, Hannah Go, Anu, Liz Vice, Jasmine Savoy Brown, Rebecca Stahl, Chrissy Zeigler, Syd Morin, Becky Samuels, June Samuels
website // instagram // facebook
“A wholly personal document, Excelsior! finds the LA-via-NYC songwriter exploring the nuances of her interpersonal relationships and the importance of listening to each other, understanding that a conversation doesn’t have to end because one person has to be right and the other wrong.” – bio