Listen: You Wanted This by Jodie Nicholson

It has been almost four years since Newcastle-upon-Tyne musician Jodie Nicholson first appeared on BlackPlastic.co.uk with Move, a sophisticated, dark piece of progressive pop.

Since then, we have also heard from Jodie with her single Why Would You (Go), a song with the drama of far off thunderstorms. The fact that even this song is now almost three-years-old breaks my brain a little. Jodie’s music has stuck with me in a way that means I find myself often coming back to it, and I had no concept of how much time had passed since first hearing of her.

The good news is that she is back with not just a new single, but a whole album. Entitled Safe Hands, the new album opens with this latest single, You Wanted This, making it the perfect (re-)introduction to Jodie’s sound and latest vision.

With gentle-yet-insistent piano chords and a hushed vocal, Nicholson’s latest song unfurls slowly before these initial elements are joined by slow, considered synths and a dubby, heavy four-four beat. Jodie’s vocals take on a filtered effect, creating the intimate feeling of a voice note left on your phone, but also providing remarkable contrast as she opens up on the bridge. As ever, the effect is astounding, both cinematic, and remarkably restrained.

Those hushed vocals are perhaps intended to be the sort of memo you record for yourself, with You Wanted This being a song about the complex feelings Nicholson has about being a musician. The song is an overt reminder of the drive that led Nicholson to make music in the first place, as she describes:

“To me, You Wanted This is about remembering why I fell in love with music in the first place. As a kid, I was obsessed with Avril Lavigne, wished I was one of Roger Waters’ backing vocalists, always searching for cool music that no-one else was listening to, wanting to be on (British TV talent show) Stars In Their Eyes and sitting in the back of the car pretending I was in a music video, singing all moody through the window… It’s thinking back to how I viewed music then and regaining that child-like excitement for the music I make now as an artist. I’d like to think that if I ever have a wobble, this track will serve as a personal reminder of why I love being an artist and what I can be capable of. Unintentional, but it’s a pretty nice feeling.”

You Wanted This is out now, and will be followed by the album, Safe Hands, via Quiet Crown / Absolute on 10 May 2024. You can also see Jodie live in the UK in May and June, with tickets available here:

18 MAY | Glasshouse ICM, Gateshead

04 JUN | Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds

05 JUN | Lower Third, London

06 JUN | Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham

08 JUN | Crofter's Rights, Bristol

09 JUN | Komedia, Brighton

11 JUN | YES (Basement), Manchester

12 JUN | SWG3 Poetry Club, Glasgow

Listen: Why Would You (Go) — Jodie Nicholson

Why Would You (Go) bubbles with a soft melancholy, like a tender but firm squeeze of your hand and your heart. With a production style that places the focus on layers, Jodie Nicholson has created a piece of music that conveys depth despite the fact it is just three-minutes in length.

Jodie has spent the past 18-months building her reputation as one of the UK’s most exciting talents, having been play-listed by BBC 6 Music and receiving coverage from numerous other radio stations and blogs. And Nicholson’s foreboding track Move left an indelible impression on me last year.

Taking inspiration from her father’s love of prog rock, Nicholson loves music that places you in a moment. There is something about the way Why Would You (Go) surrounds me in sound that evokes the feeling of prog rock and folk, albeit heavily filtered through a contemporary pop lens. Indeed, it immediately makes sense upon hearing her music that Jodie cites artists as diverse as Daugther, Warpaint, Pink Floyd and Laura Marling as influences.

Clearly unafraid of taking risks, on Why Would You (Go) Jodie has a chorus played in an uncommon 7/8th time signature. The disconcerting upheaval we hear musically makes sense, given the song’s subject:

“It’s about knowing a relationship is no good for you, but as soon as you see them, you’re like ‘how could I possibly leave?’, a conversation I had with myself time and time again. You'll hear clips of me driving, talking to myself in my car, which became a safe space for me to voice how I was feeling without ever having to admit anything to anyone else.”

Check out Why Would You (Go) below, and look out for Jodie Nicholson’s forthcoming EP, Can’t Espace The Feeling.

Listen: Move - Jodie Nicholson

I recently found time to watch Luca Guadagnino’s movie A Bigger Splash. As I mention in my review of the movie on Letterboxd, the film conveys the brutal, dramatic electricity that occurs when the general predictability of human interaction and behaviour disintegrates to leave just the id. I found the movie thrilling in the way it feels like things are constantly on the verge of falling apart.

As a piece of music, British artist Jodie Nicholson’s Move simmers with a similar sense brooding intensity. Opening with chords that slowly increase in volume as Nicholson delivers hushed vocals, Move always feels like a track that as much about the spaces between the sound as the sound itself. Much like A Bigger Splash, Move never quite tips over into the sheer chaos it threatens. Despite that, it always manages to feel so much bigger than it actually is. The economy is wonderful - this is a piece of music that has the intensity of techno and disco, yet it never has to break its cover beyond a canter. It doesn’t need to, because the strength and gravity is implied by its gait.

Move was produced remotely during the coronavirus lockdown by Tim Bran, who has also worked with London Grammar, Birdy, Halsey and Aurora. Here he has helped Nicholson create something beautiful and subtle and mesmerising. Describing the song’s creation, Jodie says:

”On the surface, its message is typical of a generic pop song, but as the track evolved in its creation, Move has become a powerful symbol for taking a feeling and running with it. It’s been an organic, impulse-driven song from the get-go and in many ways feels like an awakening. I never thought that my first time working with a producer would be during a global pandemic. Working remotely with Tim was fascinating. As I recorded vocals, he controlled my computer from the other end of the country, and we streamed the audio from both sides so we could listen together in real-time. It was honestly mind-blowing. I feel very grateful for current technology and Tim’s knowledge.”

Check out Move below:

Produced remotely during lockdown by Tim Bran (London Grammar, Birdy, Halsey, Aurora), Move sees Jodie’s ethereal vocals come to the fore amid a hypnotic and mesmerising soundscape. Bringing to mind the effortlessly cool electro-indie-pop leanings of The Japanese House, the sparse hushed vocals of Dodie and the haunting synth vibes of Grimes, Move is the perfect soundtrack to a chilled out late summer’s night. In a breakthrough 2020, Jodie has already picked up airplay from Jo Whiley on BBC Radio 2, BBC 6 Music, BT TV Music & Amazing Radio, as well as numerous live sessions, BBC Sounds playlists and ‘Track of the Week’ accolades from BBC Music Introducing. With the support of respected tastemakers including Fresh on the Net, Maverick Magazine, Record of the Day, Alexrainbird, Mahogany & Sofar Sounds, Jodie has quickly emerged as one of the UK’s most exciting new artists. Influenced by the likes of Daughter, Lucy Rose, Bombay Bicycle Club, Rae Morris, Pink Floyd, Ex:Re and Laura Marling, Jodie isn’t afraid to experiment, explore and enhance each song’s raw foundations. Using songwriting to unravel a deeper understanding and sense of self, Jodie’s music sees wistful narratives, delicate melodies and emotive lyrics sit atop deep-rooted themes of melancholy and longing. Funded by Help Musicians UK’s prestigious ‘Do It Differently’ Award, Move is the first in a series of new releases that Jodie Nicholson will be sharing over the coming months. Previous press: “To say that Jodie Nicholson faces a bright future would be doing her a disservice… she is all set to make a very big dent in the music world” – Maverick Magazine “Jodie Nicholson has beautiful tone to her voice, and if she keeps the quality up it’s only a matter of time before she is a household name” – Fresh On The Net “Jodie Nicholson is a captivating performer and writer of beautiful music. Her melodic and ethereal style alongside her note-perfect delivery can reduce the rowdiest of audiences to pin-drop silence” – NARC. Magazine “Has a touch of Stevie Nicks... Nicholson has consistently showcased herself as a songwriter of increasing quality, and a powerful performer” – Record Of The Day “An emotional quality to her sound that falls in the likings of London Grammar, Daughter and Laura Marling… She is amazing!” – Give It A Spin “Nicholson is one of a kind, her music creates new waves” – LeFutureWave