Album Review: Nakia Enjoys Simple Fun in ‘Signal’

With overpowering synths and straightforward songwriting, Nakia slowly expands his sound and lyrical depth with a healthy dose of ‘80s fun.

Written by Valeria Mota

Photo courtesy of Ima Leupp

Proud Austin musician Nakia is back from his five-year hiatus with a new approach to production, songwriting, and love in his latest project, Signal. The artist has steadily released singles from the album throughout the year, drawing listeners in with the same commanding voice that earned him a semifinal spot on the first season of “The Voice.” Combining his impressive vocals with intricate instrumentation, Nakia delivers a fun album that slowly grows its sonic and lyrical richness throughout its duration.

Signal’s first three tracks give the impression that the album will be nothing more than an ‘80s-influenced synth-pop album. The overwhelming synths on the album’s opening title track distract from Nakia’s raspy vocals, creating a sonically strange contrast. Nakia directly commands listeners to “let the music take [them] away” over the occasional guitar stroke and varying synthesizer effects. The synths only increase on the album’s second track, “Mary Mary,” as Nakia expresses jealousy over his love interest’s new partner with uncomplicated lyrics.  While the song does have a stellar bass line and keyboard chords, the production is not quite enough to create much of a sonic distinction from the previous track. The pattern continues with “Show It To Me,” with only subtle variation. While the song does include repetitive synths, Nakia takes on a slightly moodier approach that carries through most of the rest of the album. Nakia assertively tells his love interest that they must outwardly show their interest in him over an almost robotic ‘80s sound, before the verse from Swedish rapper Big Daddy Karsten creates a jarring juxtaposition between Nakia’s rhythm and the song’s ‘80s production. While the instrumentation makes the songs blend together after several listens, Nakia’s vibrant energy remains palpable and contagious, making it clear that Nakia is here to have fun.

The album’s fourth track, “We Can Make Believe,” breaks away from the staggering synths with tasteful guitar riffs and a steady drum beat. With more soulful backing instrumentals, Nakia’s passionate voice stands out as he encourages his love interest to “give in to lust” and “let [themselves] go.” The soft chorus makes listeners feel like they are flying through Nakia’s romantic fantasy, establishing the track as an intimate breath of fresh air after the previous synth-heavy cuts.

While “We Can Make Believe” sees the musician taking a different musical approach, the following song, “Hold on to Your Heart,” experiments with more ambiguous and poetic lyrics. Although the preceding songs featured straightforward takes on love, the album’s fifth track creates mysterious imagery of “fever-filled fingers in a New York night” and “digging deep daddies in a Texas tie” as Nakia reassures his love interest that they can rely on him. The track does feature the album’s notorious synths, but the incredible guitar riffs provide a refined sonic experience that makes “Hold on to Your Heart” stand out from the other ‘80s inspired tracks on the album, adding a broody dimension to Nakia’s love while still maintaining Signal’s approachable spirit.

Image courtesy of Nakia

Just as quickly as it came, Nakia’s bout of moodiness in the album’s middle tracks ends with the poppy and, of course, synth-infused “Running With Scissors.” While the song has very similar instrumentation to Signal’s first three tracks, “Running With Scissors” stands out for having Nakia’s best lyrics on the album. The catchy melody contrasts with the artist’s powerful opposition to avoiding your past mistakes and his loss of sympathy for this person who wears a “cheap disguise” to hide their self-inflicted wounds. Though “Running With Scissors” shows Nakia’s raw lyricism, the song’s faster pace and dynamic vocals keep the album’s fun energy alive. While “We Can Make Believe” and “Hold on to Your Heart” showed that the musician can successfully tackle different sounds, “Running With Scissors” proves that Nakia’s talent doesn’t stop at the production booth.

The last two tracks, “No More Rides” and “Say Goodbye One More Time,” build on the sounds and ideas from the rest of the album. “No More Rides” features angelic synths and guitar riffs, creating a heavenly atmosphere similar to “We Can Make Believe.” A clip of wolves howling adds a nice closing touch to a vulnerable track about reminiscing and yearning for a lost love. “Say Goodbye One More Time” leans more towards the dark self-assuredness of “Hold on to Your Heart” with deep bass lines and a more confident goodbye to Nakia’s love interest, though the inclusion of 808s adds an unexpected twist to an album so rooted in ‘80s influence.

Across Signal’s nine tracks, Nakia slowly but surely explores distinct lyrical and sonic directions. As the dominating ‘80s synths dwindle, the artist’s vocals and the album’s masterful guitar shine. With each listen, the intricacy of the production becomes more apparent, and it becomes even more obvious that Nakia is having loads of fun on this record. Though Nakia does not shy away from vulnerability, the songwriting’s straightforward nature and the digestible melodies make the album easy to enjoy, actively or passively. Signal’s reliance on recognizable 80s instrumentation makes the project more accessible to listeners, fulfilling Nakia’s initial demands to “let the music take [them] away.”

Rating: 6/10

Glowing Tracks: “We Can Make Believe,” “Hold on to Your Heart,” “Running With Scissors,” “No More Rides”