Ari Tahan
UK based singer/songwriter Ari Tahan has been releasing songs since 2018. She’s not afraid to mix genres and styles inside each song - something that one can only do when you’ve got the voice to pull it off, and she does. Listening to her voice its no surprise to read that she’s been featured on the BBC a few times, and has been able to get some sync licenses with her music. Pull Me Down is her tenth release and is a solid addition to her impressive catalog. Here’s our review.
It’s a mid tempo start with a muted guitar riff at around 70 bpm. Nice touch with the filters used to open up the tones right as Ari’s vocals drop. When her voice comes in, you’ll most likely be struck by the width of her tone. She’s got quite a strong lower alto range that she doesn’t have to work hard on to convey strength with. By the time you get to the first pre-chorus, she’s shown you glimpses of her wide range and abilities with some solid harmonies and nice falsetto riffs. There’s a lot of R&B feel to the instrumentation and her phrasing thus far - especially with the intervals employed in the Pre Chorus. As the chorus hits there are traces of Adele and Dido in her tone, and the Producer does a fine job of keeping the focus where it should be - on her voice - as she weaves her tale of a broken love and self worth. Instrumentally, the first chorus is broken into sections with one part featuring string accompaniment, and the other a more modern and distorted set of tones, but the focus is properly kept in place.
Second verse ups the vibe just enough as more tones come into play. It’s short and sweet - just long enough - nothing more is needed. With the second chorus we have a whole new feel as a full band drops in with drums, bass and guitars in a rock and orchestral setting that ditches the R&B feel from earlier. Bridge has a great breakdown and change in chord structure that takes the song to new heights while keep the focus on her strong vocals. In conjunction with the syncopated vocal riff used in the chorus, the way the bridge is constructed shows a depth to the writing. I also really enjoyed the chord progression employed in the chorus. In a world of 6251’s and 1454’s, this is 1354 is refreshing. Again, one of the finer points of this track are the multiple genre’s touched upon in under three and a half minutes - R&B, rock, orchestral and reggae are all employed.
Make sure you scroll down to check out her socials and earlier work. Idiot is favorite. Like this track, it features great syncopated vocal riffs and flows smoothly between different styles. Under Water is a solid power ballad that does a great job showing off her upper register. Lights Down has a killer R&B groove and some great guitar work - in addition to her solid vocals. Pull Me Down has strong female empowerment vibes to it, here’s hoping it finds a huge audience and keeps Ari’s career moving forward. Nice work!