Link copied
Photography by Betsy Y. Photo.
Love is a powerful and mysterious force. Sometimes you don’t even know what it’s doing to you until it’s too late. All of a sudden you find your brain is awash with all these weird emotions and feelings you didn’t even realise you were feeling. It’s terrifying really.
The new single from Natalie Price captures that feeling of helplessness in a relationship when you suddenly become aware that you’re not entirely in control of your own thoughts and feelings anymore, as she reflects on the relationship’s ending, as well as telling a story about struggling with the assumptions people make about a person of faith.
“It’s a confessional song where I’m realizing the impact of someone in my life; that someone meant way more to me than previously realized or wanted to admit,” Price explains. “I found myself feeling and thinking strange things and acting in strange ways. I kept wondering, ‘What have you done to me?’”
“You think that I’m a robot programmed from my youth, that I don’t make my choices or
consider other views,” she sings. “But the truth is that I got a little drunk last night and lost all of my clothes / and woke up with you on my mind / I’ll never let you know.”
Described by Price as being “Ameri-kinda,” it’s a country-tinged slacker pop anthem in the mould of contemporary greats like Julia Jacklin, Faye Webster and Jess Williamson. Price’s bittersweet lyrics spilling out of her like a stream of consciousness monologue about her profoundly ordinary and unglamorous anxieties.
Taken from Price's forthcoming self-titled record, ‘Done’ features the singer-songwriter Stephanie Lambring on vocals.
The record was produced by Mary Bragg in Nashville and Price describes the recording process as a relaxed experience, with fresh biscuits and jam every morning, and all the permission she needed to feel emotionally open.
“I was able to be honest with Mary about my fears about making the record, which was really helpful,” she says. “There were songs that I had to re-work while we were in the studio, and I was able to go to an emotional place in order to do that work.”
"I was struck by her resonant voice,” says Bragg. “She had a way of approaching melody that was wildly original and quirky. It was an incredibly life-giving challenge to serve her songs as they were born into the recorded world. Raucous yet crystalline; honest yet philosophical; optimistic yet heartbreaking. What else can you ask for?”
Born in Fort Worth, Texas, Price’s early exposure to music was mainly church gospel tunes and contemporary Christian radio. Looking back, she describes her writing as a reaction to the shiny, glossy, Christian culture songs she was surrounded by; “Christian music tends to get tied up with a perfect bow at the end,” she says, “But that’s not how life actually is. Not everything gets resolved.”
Price is already one of Austin’s most recognised up-and-coming singer-songwriters, and her new self-titled release, Natalie Price, looks set to take her even further beyond as she explores complex emotions and experiences through her well-honed skills as a songwriter.
“I’ve gotten comfortable writing about the darker side of life,” says Price. “I don’t think every story needs to be tied up with a perfect bow.”
'Done' Is premiering exclusively on Holler below.
‘Done’ featuring Stephanie Lambring is released on June 30th.
Photography by Betsy Y. Photo.
