“Seventeen” by Rockers Nané

Genres, as we used to know them, are about as outdated DVDs in 2021, and in their new single “Seventeen,” rockers Nané flirt with elements that spread across the pop spectrum and beyond while sounding like one of the more cohesive bands coming out of their scene at the moment. Although powered by driving guitar parts in the chorus, “Seventeen” has the structure of an R&B song and the delicate touch of an experimental pop number, making the energy its players bring to their performance the primary feature worth writing home about in both the song and its accompanying music video. 

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The lead vocals are interwoven with the punch of the groove in this single, and I think this was essential to creating as solid a foundation on the bottom and top of the master mix as possible. The bassline doesn’t have to exert any additional pressure in compensation for a gap where we find our singer in the first stanza, and by the time we hit the fever pitch in the song the guitars are creating such a smooth segue for our vocalist that the percussion doesn’t have to over-indulgently shape the rhythm of the music. It’s a give-and-take system and one that screams efficiency more than it does unneeded excess. 

There’s a bold color to these guitar parts that left me feeling really excited about the tonal intensity of Nané, but I’m hesitant to credit the riffing in the chorus as being the lustiest component of the track. To be frank, there is simply too much going on with the other instrumentation in this mix – not to mention the singer himself – to get hung up on any specific details within the music, which can be attributed to this band’s undying love of the classic pop model; streamlined, simple, and to the point. 

The bass in “Seventeen” has a crushing weight, but it’s worked into the beat rather than being left unutilized beside the drums. Seamless integration is a cornerstone of making effective pop music, and right now I can’t say that I’ve come across another group of players as good at the formula they’ve fashioned for themselves as Nané is right now. They know who they are and what they’re capable of, and this performance is more or less a celebration of their standards. The video sports a lot of whimsy, but there’s nothing funny about how much its designers love their work. 

“Seventeen” is certainly an addictive alternative rocker that incorporates a lot of sexy R&B swing into its rhythm, and judging from how well it’s delivered by Nané, I would have to assume that its hybrid stylization is something they’re going to come back to again in the near future. I personally don’t see anything about their artistry that needs modifying in any capacity; they’ve got the moves and the melodic command to make some really fluid, fearlessly original music, and were this not the case I don’t believe they would have dropped “Seventeen” with as much swagger as they did last month. 

Mindy McCall