Kiwi artist LearningToDive is here with his third single to date. The stunner ‘Rise’ comes with a really distinctive identity that is executed with taste and grace, fusing genres and influences fluently to present us with a song that effortlessly carries its weight in the realms of alt-rock that grows more crowded by the day.
Hailing from Wellington, New Zealand, LearningToDive is a producer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist who is featuring Bravo Bonez on his latest release, ‘Rise’, and Bravo Bonez is the alter ego of LearningToDive. Yes, it took us a moment too. LearningToDive is a musical identity dreamed up by Bonez to express his more serious topics and views on society and the planet, distancing these cuts from his usually upbeat and retro releases under his name.
With ‘Rise’, we have a cut of alternative rock that’s deliciously restrained and brooding. Via a menacing boomy bass line and filtered guitar riffs, both featuring more space than notes, and pounding grooves, the cut is perfectly stomping, and with Bonez’s monotone delivery on the dry verses, perhaps pulling a page from the book of Faithless, the lyrics shine through with ease. Telling a story of a life dotted with deceit and harassment, ‘Rise’ calls for its protagonist to rise above it all and claim victory, and LearningToDive masterfully pulls this off through contrast. From the menacing and acidic verses, sung in a dry pan delivery, and with the mix remaining relatively dry and minimal, inducing a hypnotizing gravity to the sound, Bonez then drops a chorus that’s as lush and as gratifying as is sonically possible. With the introduction of an airy synth pad, tremolo strings, and his expansive melody and expressive delivery, on top of the same familiar boomy bass and guitar lines, sufficient contrast is created between chorus and verse to give the whole arrangement meaning and purpose. Beautifully done.
‘Rise’ is a song beautifully orchestrated and executed. Bravo Bonez pulls off a winner that’s intelligent and deep, and just menacing, cool, and dramatic.