Singer & Chapman Stick Player Bright Brown Celebrates Collaboration and Environment from the Desert in Fourth Studio Album
Listen to “Where the Ocean Once Was” Here
Cover art by Sarah Nestel
February 1, 2023 - Starting the year off embarking on a soul searching journey, Brooklyn’s very own Bright Brown taps into new environments in his fourth full length album to hit streaming services, “Where the Ocean Once Was”. Recorded in the midst of the Mojave, Bright Brown aka Alex Nahas uses his low poetic croon and cinematic Chapman Stick textures to exude the desert’s pure expanse. “Where the Ocean Once Was” explores an earth in flux mirroring the struggle with personal change and growth. “Built from smoke / and forced to rot / I feel set adrift / I feel landlocked” from the song “Kid Cali” is one of the many moments that parallels environmental effects with emotional ones.
Brought to life through organic musical collaborations with both new and old friends, the full length project offers fans a refreshingly immersive sound while also serving as a natural extension of his older works. Recorded at Joshua Tree’s Goat Mountain Studio by Pat Kearns, Nahas reunited with members of his first ever teenage band, drummer Eddie Avakian and keyboardist Jamie Muhoberac (Seal, Was Not Was, John Mayer, My Chemical Romance).
Nahas’s sister, percussionist Ava Nahas, adds ethereal North African notes to the record, providing a natural synergy to the project’s desert energy. A few of the songs also feature additional vocalists Emily Cavanagh & Meg Massalone. The collaborative project offers a diverse palette of sounds, messages, and vibrant energy that document a humbling experience, reminding Nahas that, to a certain point, our daily problems are controlled by our perspective. And with this project, the memories of connection and collaboration will last a lifetime.
Bright Brown’s music has received high praise from popular outlets such as Celebmix, IHeart Radio’s Kalisha Perera and NYS Music. Nahas delivers influence from artists like Peter Gabriel, Talk Talk, David Bowie and Elvis Costello - all being one of a kind musicians who shoehorned unorthodox approaches into digestible pop music. Thoughtful and reflective, with a knack for rendering outside-world concerns in the landscape of the personal, Bright Brown continues to venture into new frontiers with each successive song.
He will be debuting his album via Livestream from Rockwood Music Hall on Tuesday 1/31/22 at 8pm EST. Visit ticket links here to learn more about how you can reserve an exclusive view.
Photo by Rebecca Wilson