Nathan Harrington Releases “Over the Mountain”

Musician and actor Nathan Harrington (Us)’s new single Over the Mountain is out now and available on Spotify. The 21-year-old talent already is showing signs of future billboards success, the song a perfect amalgam of old-school reggae in the spirit of Bob Marley. There’s also a distinctly sunny, LA-vibe that permeates the single, making it the perfect Sunny California song for the new year.

Harrington describes his intention with music to “heal people”, stating, “Reggae holds a high vibration, and I believe it can pull people away from the darkness.” This is amplified by the lyrics in the song’s chorus, in his soft, Southern-tinged voice Harrington proclaiming, Over the mountain, there’s a city – where love reigns and darkness falls in line.

Harrington boldly incorporates a majority of reggae principles into an otherwise distinctly pop, Southern California ballad. Lyrically the song in every way is cur from the same cloth as Bob Marley, articulating clearly and concisely precepts of a kinder, better world.

“Over the Mountain” crosses into the silence from which it came swirling only three minutes earlier with a peaceful descent into hope, but its optimistic tone doesn’t fade away nearly as quickly as the acoustic melody do. Nathan Harrington was definitely going for something inspirational in this most recent release, and for my money, he couldn’t have done a much better job. There are still some areas in his aesthetical approach that could use some streamlining in the future, but for what we’ve come to expect out of his output, I think this is definitely something that his loyal fans are going to be excited about.

Such sentiments often can lean towards hammy drivel if not expressed effectively, but Harrington never falters. Through simple but dramatic euphemisms and metaphors, he paints such a picture that is as evocative as it is moving. The effectiveness of artists like Harrington is the juxtaposition between their lyrical content and their musical presentation. In terms of the latter, everything stays the same. It’s the precise calculation and wording of the lyrics that to the seasoned listener differentiates the music.

In all, that is what makes songs like Harrington’s Over the Mountain so effective. It communicates spiritual and worldly values, but in a way that’s hip and upliftingly fun.

Mindy McCall