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Nathan Vincent’s New Single “Blue Ridge State” Brings Nostalgia for Familiarity

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Nathan Vincent’s new single “Blue Ridge State” is an indie-folk masterpiece that teases his upcoming EP, Cedar and Pine, with rich acoustic instrumentation and intimately vulnerable lyrics. Filled with a sense of nostalgia, “Blue Ridge State” reflects on Vincent’s connection to nature and familiar places, giving tribute to his time living in North Carolina amongst the sleepy pine trees. Inspired by Bon Iver’s song “33 “GOD,” Vincent connected with the lyrical lines, ‘I know so well this is all there is. This is how we grow now. The child ignored, This will be just places to me now.’

Vincent says “Blue Ridge State” is “an ode to that transition. It’s focused on the duality of both deconstructing and letting go of the hard parts about an old familiar space in order to ultimately find joy in home.” The rich instrumentation brings a focus to traditional Appalachian mountain music, yet maintains a contemporary twist on the indie-folk genre with Vincent’s mellow vocals. Overall, “Blue Ridge State” brings listeners back to a place of familiarity and allows them to wrestle with its good and bad, its sins and virtues, and its darkness and light.

“Blue Ridge State” is the first single to be released from Vincent’s upcoming EP, Cedar and Pine, due to be released April 24th. “Every time I listen to Nathan Vincent’s new EP, I get a feeling akin to driving through the Pacific Northwest as the sun begins to set. His introspective lyrics combine with mellow vocal layers and rich acoustic instrumentation to bring about a sound reminiscent of Sufjan Stevens, S. Carey, and Gregory Alan Isakov.” (- Chris Jacobie, Producer).

Nathan Vincent was born and raised in the bustling city of Metro Manila in the Philippines, yet moved back and forth during his youth to a sleepy suburban town called Wake Forest, North Carolina. Life in these two places were the first inspiration for Vincent’s musical thoughts to come to fruition, often created by a sonically-divided dichotomy and tension of noise and silence between the two homes. Now residing in Austin, Texas, Vincent aims to create a unique soundscape he categorizes as “Sleepy Folk.”

With honest romanticism and bittersweet warmth interwoven in his rich acoustics and mellow vocals, Vincent’s music has a prophetic clarity in its songwriting that looks deep into the hearts of people, unmasking what’s happening on the inside. “[Vincent’s] music lets people and things be messy and complicated and allows them to rest in heavy nostalgia; it creates the space of invitation where we can meet others and God into ourselves and into our very dusty humanness.

Artwork for “Blue Ridge State” by Nathan Vincent

Dawn Jones is the curator of the V13 imPRESSED Column. Previously known as imPRESSED Indie Music Blog, Jones and her team joined forces with V13 in 2020 to collaborate on an exclusive column on V13's site (imPRESSED) to bring a niche focus to the rapidly evolving indie music genre. Dawn is also the founder of Pressed PR - a boutique PR agency that focuses on PR for independent creatives. Pressed PR’s team works on a variety of campaigns partnering with independent filmmakers, independent artists, and independent labels. Pressed PR’s music clientele has landed in the pages of Billboard, Atwood Magazine, EARMILK, HYPE Magazine, and many others.

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