Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez
In today’s age, technology has flooded our lives with content. Caught in the mire are modern musicians who champion an art form more widely distributed than any other throughout human history. And we, more often than not, overlook the music created by unfamiliar faces because it’s challenging. We’d rather have an easy listen, a known quantity to skim through while we think about something else.
Hearing is easy, but listening is difficult. Welcome to “Why We Like It,” where we rebuke the trends in favor of thoughtful analysis and underknown sounds.
“Stages” Ft. KAMAUU — Adeline
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How We Found It
The lead single from Adeline’s Adi Oasis EP, “Stages” recently landed in our SubmitHub inbox. Following up her 2020 album, Intérimes, the French-Caribbean multi-instrumentalist and vocalist wanted to create a safe haven from the troubles over the last few years in the form of music.
Why We Like It
As defined by OutKast, liberation is the absence of attention paid to what others think and what you are ‘supposed’ to do. Liberation is at the forefront of Adeline’s mind on “Stages,” the concept dripping off every word she sings. The feeling of liberation is not expressed through the meanings of each line: it’s abstract, it is larger than the confines of words. Liberation is found in the supreme control Adeline has over her tone, her melody and pace, a sort of musical defiance. Adeline does not need to tell you that she’s free, you know it when you hear her.
This control is most apparent in the transition between KAMAUU’s verse and Adeline’s second. KAMAUU comes with a pacey, explosive and bubbly tone that fits snugly inside the instrumental. However, when Adeline re-enters the track, she slows it right down to a smooth, relaxing ballad. The switch-up feels natural, and Adeline receives control of the song with deftness, grace and a calm command. She croons, “I’m just trying to be serious / Not trying to be no stereotype,” centering herself and her uniqueness through rich melody. “Stages” is a song of many phases, with sections of more intense instrumentation or tougher subject matter, but through it all Adeline remains at the same pace, forcing the world to bend to the path she has chosen.
Photo Credit: Morgan Whiley
From Adeline
The things that I’ve gone through are very common and that’s why I wanted to write a song about it. It’s a combination of different things: being woman in the music business, or any professional field, being a black woman, being a black person, being someone who wants to be taken seriously regardless of their looks, being someone who’s been around people who make a point to let them know they are not good enough, or simply being someone who at times doubts themselves, most likely because of all of the above. The world is harsh indeed, so it’s important to remember to be kind to ourselves. This is unfortunately not a singular experience. Self-affirmation is a key word in the process of creating. I can’t freely create while telling myself that I’m not good enough. The ‘just gonna do me’ and ‘I’m right on time’ mantras are reminders that we are good enough and that we will reach our goals eventually, on our own terms.” – Adeline for CentralSauce
More From Adeline
Adeline’s new EP is called Adi Oasis and is available wherever you get your music. Also be sure to listen to its predecessor, Intérimes. Keep up with Adeline’s releases by following her on Twitter and Instagram.
More to Discover
Subscribe to the CentralSauce mailing list so you never miss out on the freshest sauce. Check out this continuously updated playlist of songs Ryan has added to our Discovery section! Each track or artist has been featured in our “Why We Like It” section, so be sure to check out the page here on the site.
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