Qulture Magazine

Nick has been writing, producing, playing and releasing music for over ten years now and has firmly asserted himself as one of Scotland’s best indie singer-songwriters. Here we take a look at his newest venture which is a cover of The Rolling Stones hit ‘Gimme Shelter’. There have been many covers of this song over the years, but Nick has managed to put enough of his own twist on this version, that it’s miles apart from the rest.

The indie scene has made a huge comeback over the last couple of years and artists like Nick bringing their own versions of big classics like this, is what keeps them relevant and brings them back to the younger generations attention, so we have to appreciate that.
The melody throughout is the same familiar tune as the original, but as soon as Nick’s vocals come in, it’s like a whole different song.

He has this nice vulnerability to his voice and tone that remind me of singers like Damon Albarn from Blur and Morrissey. The song kicks up a gear when backing vocals come in from powerhouse singer Jennie Bellestar of 80s pop group The Bellestars. The harmonies between the pair just work, so much so that you would be forgiven for thinking this was always their song. Jennie’s smooth and soulful tones combined with Nick’s deep indie/grunge grittiness, are a pairing you wouldn’t think would work on paper but some how does in production.

The mix of continuous acoustic guitar laced over with amazing electric guitar licks which I believe are from Alex Dengate (from another band Nick is part of called The 121s), are the basis of the song. However, you can tell that the making of this cover was done meticulously and with care, not to add or subtract too much and stray too far from the originals path, which I think is why this works so well.

It’s definitely a brave choice, taking on such an iconic song from such an iconic band, but the way Nick has achieved this, he has done them justice and it makes me excited to see what else has to come from the Dundee singer-songwriter before the year is out!
What is great about Nick is his eclectic musical journey and this seems to be continuing. You can listen to one of his projects and find a more psychedelic funk oriented style and then listen to another and find a more delicate, acoustic record, nuanced with a melancholy undercurrent. His music takes you on a journey and even though predominantly in the indie genre, it also dabbles in varying areas, which is one of the reasons I think his career will continue for many years to come.

The single ‘Gimme Shelter’ is OUT NOW and you can find it, along with two other amazing new B Side covers ‘She Caught The Katy’ (originally by Taj Mahal, but also covered by The Blues Brothers) and ‘Hey Hey My My’ (originally by Neil Young) below.