After three years in the making Melbourne Musicians Velvet Bloom have released their self titled debut album this week.
Velvet Bloom is a truly soulful album. I adore 90’s soul artists like Mary J Blige and Erykah Badu and you can absolutely hear those influences throughout this album blended with an ethereal otherworldlyness. I love how unapologetically the band have leaned into their unique style, and to have such strength of conviction in recognising who they are as a band on a first album release is incredible.
Lead singer Maddie Herbert’s vocals are silky sweet and sit perfectly against the gentle funk of the backing music. It’s such an easy listening album. I enjoyed the seamless blending of the songs and the clear vision of the album so much I actually got swept away the first time I listened to it and 30 minutes felt like it passed by in a second.
I love the sonic variety and the use of different instrumental sounds from the brass in Best In You (featuring Brennan Hamilton-Smith) to what I think is a glockenspiel in Nobody Else. I won’t take you through a full track by track but some personal highlights included She’s Gone, which takes the album down a slightly darker path and for me, was incredibly evocative, and Realign which is a beautifully stripped back number. It’s a promising, authentic debut album from these Melbourne soulsters.
About Velvet Bloom
Melbourne four piece, Velvet Bloom are a soul-pop band. Their first EP, Glimmer, released in 2022 served as a catalyst for their rise and saw them tour nationally across Australia. The close-knit band credit the ongoing support from their friends and family as the key to their success. They recently signed to Yama- Nui records for the release of self-titled, Velvet Bloom.
Tour
Velvet Bloom are undertaking a Nation-wide tour in Australia. They’ll visit all states and territories for the first time.
