Bert Fenber – “No Return”
Across generations and genres, musicians worldwide increasingly recognize the threat of climate change and are expressing themselves as they know best: through their music. Another powerful voice has recently joined the echoes of this protest with his song “No Return”. The track finds the highly skilled and mature Euro-American singer-songwriter Bert Fenber at the forefront, with the driving rhythm guitars and the backing vocals of Jacqueline Weber and Pearls on Drops underscoring the song’s instant impact. Fenber has never been one to shy away from any issues – social, political or even personal. Regardless, it’s still exciting to see the artist take on climate so directly today.
“No Return” sounds like an intelligent and logical conversation on the state of the world, with Bert Fenber unpacking the facts on the effects of climate change. However, it’s not simply what Fenber is saying, but the way he is saying it. There is a lucidity in his reasoning, which gives him a free run-and-jump at inventing an easy on the ear melody. A trait naturally found in any of Bert Fenber’s songs, which are always received with a genuine understanding from his audience.
Bert Fenber is burning the candles of nostalgia and urgency in equal measure, as he brims with both youthful curiosity, and grown-up concern. Fenber works an ear-catching, tight melody that occasionally opens and brightens, while in the background, you hear his anguish for the future continue.
While the familiar sounds that have long permeated Bert Fenber’s world remain – acoustic strums, calculated rhythms, and crystal-clear vocals – the difference this time is the focus paid to Fenber’s singing, a melodic patchwork of earnest urgency that is front and center in a track seriously interested in cohesion and atmospherics. Both of which are beautifully supplied by the backing vocals of Jacqueline Weber and Pearls on Drops. All perfectly amalgamated by producer Jochen Hohmann.
Bert Fenber has always used his voice to put a stamp on his music, and on “No Return” that correlation works perfectly. “No Return” is a powerful song, and the excellent instrumentation forms an engaging template for Fenber’s vocals and narrative. Here the singer songwriter builds on the emotional directness of his earlier work without repeating the same musical gestures. It’s also a testament to the singer, as his voice shines through stronger than ever.
Throughout “No Return”, Bert Fenber presents himself as an observer surveying a world on the brink, close to becoming just ruined earth and contaminated seas. The chorus forges the kind of gorgeous melody that most songwriters would repeat, over, and over again, before moving on. Fenber does not, as he lets the curtain drop quickly, leaving the repeat-function for the end of the song.
On his latest work, singer-songwriter Bert Fenber shares thoughts on his devotion to higher human ideals in ways that reflect his deep engagement with the outside world. “No Return” is organic and pristine, marked by a steady beat and enlivened by sparks from Fenber’s collaborators. Bert Fenber has bestowed experience to craft a protest tour-de-force that displays an understanding of the power of music.
OFFICIAL LINKS: WEBSITE – FACEBOOK – INSTAGRAM – YOUTUBE – Newcomer Music Management
