PREMIERE | The NaveBlues Bring To Light “Pale Blue Dot”
The NaveBlues premiere “Pale Blue Dot” today on Medium. The song was inspired by Voyager 1’s interstellar trek into infinite space, carrying a golden record filled with music, as it snapped the photo of the pale blue dot four billion miles from earth.
Tagged as a blues rock band from Norway, The NaveBlues are much more than simply a blues band. Blending and bending elements from a variety of genres, including the blues, indie, rock, alt-rock, and funk, The NaveBlues sculpt raw elements into burnished music, like a swordsmith forges blooms of steel into Ulfberht swords.
Fronted by Navé Pundik, whose gift on the harmonica goes beyond extraordinary and enters the realm of consummate effulgence, The NaveBlues create cap-a-pie delicious music, subtly tight, deeply emotional, and immersed in ferocious dynamism approaching the edge of the abyss. It’s glorious, magnificent music, supercharged with hormonal exuberance.
“Pale Blue Dot” opens on a rumbling bass line riding a saturating drum shuffle flowing into a blues-heavy melody flavored with visceral rock energy. Creamy, oozing guitars cry with melancholy prior to rocketing off into rockabilly savors topped by Pundik’s suavely growling tones inflected with a scrumptious drawling Southern camber.
On “Pale Blue Dot,” Pundik’s voice is slightly reminiscent of Eric Burdon of The Animals, rough, raw, edgy, and smoldering with smoky hues. It’s a grandly evocative voice, full of tiny hooks of arcing timbres infused with steaming textures.
“Please take care of the pale blue dot / It’s the only one we got.”
The video, directed by The NaveBlues, initially presents documentary-like images, as if from a Carl Sagan film, but then shifts to Pundik seated in the mountains near Bergen, Norway. Noticing a ribbon of light, Pundik gives chase, ending up in front of small boulder emitting a blue radiance. On the boulder is the golden record from Voyager 1. Another glimmer of light appears in the distance and Pundik races towards it, carrying the golden record. Arriving, he raises the golden record to the sky, emblazoning the heavens with a fantastic symbol.
“Pale Blue Dot” surges with cool bluesy heft, an engaging rhythm, and thrumming rockabilly relish, as well as the galvanizing voice of Navé Pundik.
The NaveBlues
Possess You
The NaveBlues have an unmistakable sound right now, the sort the meanders and evolves in a number of fairly unique ways throughout the presentation of a single track. Possess You seems like the perfect place to begin. Initially showcasing over two minutes of pure, vibrant, instrumental blues and indie rock, the song underlines the core energy and artistry of the band in a mighty way. There’s not a whole lot else that comes to mind as you listen to and indeed watch the band and their front man weave these melodies and characterful structures around you. It’s great music, highlighted in an exciting and captivating way.
Possess You is a huge track, the music feels like blues rock, gritty and infectious, energizing, yet there’s a certain effect and tone to the harmonica – the driving force of the song’s melody and sentiment for the most part – which moves the whole thing over into some sub-genre of electronic rock; a vibe later accompanied by the surrounding ambiance.
The music begins in a delicate fashion, a simple indie-rock guitar riff emerges, a light beat, clearly organic and seemingly captured live. The harmonica though has a distinctly distant and rock-inspired edge to it, which, even though the set-up itself is fresh and notably unusual, adds further to this sense of identity and originality that the band thrive on. There’s also a certain level of contrast displayed between the melodies within, certain elements have a gentle nature about them, others have more of an intense and distorted feel. This increases the effect of such an interesting structure and set-up.
The song’s structure is a big part of its appeal. After two minutes, the leading vocal comes into play – a surprising touch adding further personality and flair. The leading voice has far more of an indie-rock or even classic rock and roll performance style to it, offering up a string of freely wandering melodies that again toy with the progression of the song – changing the pace, breaking things down to the mellow and spacious, before allowing the instrumentation to intensely raise the energy back up to the sky. The final minute of the song sees the music explode around you in this uplifting and hugely memorable way. It’s a powerful performance and a strong introduction to a band doing their own thing entirely. A live show from The NaveBlues would likely be immense.
Exclusive Music Video Premiere: “Sitting On Top Of The World” – Supremely Delicious Blues From The NaveBlues
The NaveBlues release “Sitting On Top Of The World” today, a cover of the country blues tune by Walter Vinson and Lonnie Chatmon, recorded in 1930 and, in 2008, entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Hailing from Norway, The NaveBlues blend elements from rock, indie, funk, alt rock and the blues into a flavor of blues rock that’s inspired by the past, but predicated on the future.
The front man for The NaveBlues is Nave Pundik, whose talent on the harmonica is nonpareil. Pundik manipulates his instrument with the precision of the schemes of forgotten monomaniacs, providing entirely new sonic vistas for aural pleasure and emotional speculation.
“Sitting On Top Of The World” begins with a crawling, howling harmonica that puts listeners’ insides in the grip of full winter, followed by a rich, dusky tenor oozing a concentrated blues flavor that’s cogent enough to interpose a sheen of perspiration on your forehead. A rambling, bluesy piano drives the nastily effortless melody, as Pundik’s thick seeping vocals exude an unctuous oily essence, piercing the listener’s diaphragm with an odd tickle of emotion, centered somewhere in the lungs. When Pundik’s harmonica again wails, it’s like something at once noun and verb, an embedded richly opulent, yet raw and savage simmering sound, that approaches the vampiric, sucking the life from your body.
Pundik’s rendition of the lyrics exude a stochastic resonance deploying a wildly exotic blues complexity that’s big, with a sensual, more alive than alive sonic projection rife with desolation and woe.
“One summer day / She ran away / She’s gone and left me / She’s gone to stay / Yes, now she’s gone / But I can’t worry / Cuz I’m a sittin’ on top of the world / Had worked all summer / I had worked the fall / I had worked the Christmas / In my white overalls / Yes, now she’s gone / But I can’t worry / Cuz I’m sittin’ on top of the world.”
Candidly, The NaveBlues’ version of “Sitting On Top Of The World” blew me away. Listening to Pundik’s moaning, keening harmonica is equivalent to hearing fierce annular shock waves spinning about your ears. It approaches a religious ecstatic experience.
The video amalgamates classical ballet with a thrumming, insistent blues melody, providing a sublime aural and visual nexus of music and dance. A ballerina sits in an empty dance hall, waiting for inspiration. Nave Pundik’s objective is to arouse the ballerina to gracious, elegant movement. As she lingers, anticipating the music, Nave’s harmonica breaks the eloquent silence, searing the atmosphere, triggering the ballerina to dance.
On the one hand, the video is austere and starkly bleak; on the other hand, it emanates a cool and proto-punk feel that’s gorgeously surreal.
I say without any doubt or hesitation The NaveBlues have it going on! The molten, delicious braying of the harmonica and the sinuous piano provide a wickedly sensuous melody. And Pundik’s miraculous voice seethes with exhaustion and tribulation. Frankly, if you miss this song, you’re doing yourself a supreme disservice.
The NaveBlues will possess you with their track ‘The Ghost Collector’
Review by Skye W. Winwood
Who ya gonna call? Well, Nave Pundik apparently. Already capturing us with their atmospheric track ‘Possess You’, the band are now haunting the music scene once more with their song ‘The Ghost Collector’ from the self-titled album, The NaveBlues.
Listen to and watch the music video for ‘The Ghost Collector’
A quick refresh: The NaveBlues are a four person Norwegian band carried on a wave of heavy drum beats, electrifying guitar and rocking harmonica playing. Akin to Led Zeppelin and Creedence Clearwater Revival, their album is filled to the brim with phenomenally talented tracks consisting of both instrumental pieces and ones featuring Nave’s resonating vocals.
Nave is slowly turning himself into the Pied Piper of the harmonic, once again blowing everyone away with his insane talent with the instrument. ‘The Ghost Collector’ tells a narrative without words of one man and his harmonic on a crusade to rid the world of unruly spirits. A narrative you can feel a personal connection with after listening to the track once because it’s a jaunty, jarring track that will have you breaking that replay button. A little more upbeat than ‘Possess You’, ‘The Ghost Collector’ is a fast paced, unrelenting instrumental piece with an underlying discord of chaos descending further and further into The NaveBlues classic rock blues world.
News on The NaveBlues
by DLG
Listening to your music my top five are; Sitting On Top Of The World which has a lot of soul, especially in the lyrics. The Ghost Collector is a great song to feel energized and start the day. Sexy Kiss is well…very sexy and daring, it’s a fun song to listen to. Early in the Morning showcases your bands talent and ability the best, I think. However, my favorite has to be Possess You. The song is smooth, flawless, and perfect in every possible way. There is a wonderful balance of instrumental, harmonica solo, and singing. The pause in the music video adds so much to the feel of the moment, it’s very easy to get lost in the passion embedded within. Thank you for sharing, it was a pleasure and privilege to listen.
Blues Magazine
All about blues music and more
Fons Delemarre (translated from Dutch)
Nave Pundik is frontman and figurehead of the quirky Norwegian bluesband The NaveBlues . Beaten paths are not spent on him and his band. But music that has a long, colorful history (aka Blues) shake a bit and put a pepper in her ass is all the more his thing. To begin with, the sound of the band. Reverb, reverb and grand production are apparently available in Norway, because from the first note onwards the harmonica of Pundik sounds like a ship horn and that steamer does not stop until the last song is played out.
Inspired by Little Walter Pundik subtly (sometimes) and he does his best to brutally (regularly) curving the membranes of his harmonica. Musical references? Maybe the album ‘Something Real’ by Storm Warning or the albums by Smokehouse . One thing is certain: The Naveblues sets the bar high for itself.
Anyone who wants to take part in looking for new blues roads should definitely try to jump over that bar together with NaveBlues. My advice: do it!
Keywords: Ambitious. Not afraid of the duvel. Innovative. Artistic. Quirky. Original. Playful. Serious. Also special are the videos that The NaveBlues makes. Sometimes a trip to Mars ( Thank You ), sometimes ( Sexy Kiss) a story about a mysterious box (sender Little Walter) intended for a girl who is then fiercely dragged along by the harmonica in the box. Another clip shows us a beautiful ballet dancer who captures the music (a cover of Sitting On Top Of The World ) compellingly.
Pretentious? Maybe, but intriguingly beautiful. Incidentally, The NaveBlues is not recommended for hardened blues purists ….
Rockstar Blogs
The Nave Blues hail from Bergen, Norway and are fronted by the multi-talented Vocalist/Harmonica player Nave Pudnik. a man that aims “intention of becoming the blues you will come to know; Something different, yet familiar ” a brand of modern blues combined with Alternative rock Pudnik promises to make music for an “oasis for the masses”. The brand of Blues he aims to create does not disappoint on this half- hour, 7 track debut with a solid display of soulful crooning, tasty guitar licks, and sonic harmonica play. This EP is a delightful insight into the crossover of classic ebbing towards modern blues. The opener Sexy kiss is accompanied by an audiovisual to legendary harmonica player Little Walter, an inspiration to the lead vocalist, and who was inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame in 2008. A blazing roar of that favoured instrument signals the intent with the juxtaposition of sultry vocals that interact between Pudnik and his female counterpart that oozes the bravado of a delta blues track. The combination of modern rock with classic blues is a strong dynamic that works with the music here. It is the mercurial abilities of Pudnik on the harmonica that captures the essence. He controls the instrument like it was his voice with the ability to alter his emotion through that acts as a purveyor throughout the remaining tracks. This is evident on the follow up track say my name. A slow burner that feels reflective in the mood of the track and a beautiful multi-layered track that leaves you drifting through the clouds above. In a Quiet place A piano-soaked song has Pudnik and his counterpart reflecting on their thoughts that would not be out of a place in a smoke-filled jazz lounge, Early in the morning is the standout track of separation has the frontman in sonic mode with his harmonica playing centre stage in tandem with a slick guitar solo that whips into a frenzy that underlies the overall nature of the album. Thank you is a Led Zeppelin cover rich in melody and tenderness, The album closes with the ghost collecter is a rowdy 4-min jam session of frenzied blues, lung-busting harmonica of harmonica play and power chords that rouse the listener into a manic foot stomping spell Tender rose is a sweet and touching song finale with all the raw emotion and soul that wraps up an enjoyable half-hour lesson in the evolution of a new blues movement.
Lightning Nation
THE NAVEBLUES REDEFINE ROCK WITH HARMONICA-HEAVY TRACK ‘POSSESS YOU’
Every now and then an artist emerges that defies your expectations as a listener. Cue The NaveBlues, a Norwegian-hailing blues-rock group with one crucial twist: harmonica. In new track ‘Possess You’ frontman Nave Pundik strays from the well-worn template of rock, placing vocal duties on the back-burner and inserting his virtuosic harmonica playing at the forefront. It’s a refreshing offering from the four-piece, especially in a genre that has become somewhat predictable over the years. But, for those listeners that still crave the hallmarks of a rock song, fear not, you’ll still hear the pounding drums, chugging bass, and dark guitar licks that are typical of the genre.
