Nevena Shines on Self-Titled Debut Album
The Serbian vocalist turns out an amazing melodic rock album with plenty of pop sensibility in her first effort for Frontiers Music.
Thank you for spending part of your day with Michael’s Record Collection. It seems like I might be finally recovering from the scheduling issues from a few weeks ago, when a combination of some interviews getting pushed back and a not-so-fun bout with the flu forced some things to get moved.
I’m pleased to have a few cool interviews either already scheduled or in advanced talks toward finalizing. The period from mid-December through January can be a difficult time for scheduling and it’s typically a bit slower than the rest of the year in terms of new releases, so it’s always nice to have some things planned out for this period on the calendar, even if those plans can be undone by a pesky microscopic organism.
This week, I wanted to talk about a melodic rock record from Serbian vocalist Nevena Dordevic, who just released her self-titled debut album on Dec. 9. Among the myriad releases in the genre from Frontiers Music and other labels, it’s always a nice surprise when an album stands out from the crowd, and Nevena certainly does that.
Let’s get into that story.
One of the true pleasures in life (for me, anyway) is discovering an artist who comes seemingly out of nowhere and releases a terrific debut album. It is doubly satisfying when that debut album is in the rock genre, hinting at the potential of a fantastic recording career yet to come while proving once again that rock is far from dead.
My mind overflows with questions about what might lie ahead. Will the artist be able to put out a second album that’s just as good or is this a lightning-in-a-bottle type thing? Will they find commercial success and be able to sustain a career? How many albums will they release? What twists and turns might their musical journey take?
Serbian vocalist Nevena Dordevic is the latest artist to pique my interest in such ways with her fantastic self-titled debut, Nevena, which came out on Frontiers Music on Dec. 9.
From my perspective, Nevena has come out of nowhere and delighted me with 11 outstanding melodic rock tracks that are performed brilliantly, stick in my head in all the right ways, and have me humming them throughout my day. But she didn’t just materialize fully formed. Her musical journey began before the turn of the century.
Born in Serbia in 1993, Nevena wasn’t an “album person” growing up. She latched onto bands like Nightwish, Iron Maiden, and Guns N’ Roses in the early days of YouTube.
“In middle school I was obsessed with metal rock bands, actually,” Nevena said.
But she also got into pop acts such as Whitney Houston. Much later, she gravitated toward indie pop artists like Bon Iver and Hozier and started getting into jazz.
During the time when she was forming her early musical opinions, she was also learning about music formally. Her formal music education started at age nine, when she started attending music school.
“Then, once I was done with middle school, I went to music high school…with liberal arts subjects, and that’s when it started getting serious,” she said.
Nevena already had a plan in mind to attend music college, but what turned her attention toward potentially becoming a singer was a deep run on the First Voice of Serbia, a music reality show similar to several that are popular here in the United States, such as The Voice and American Idol. Nevena became a finalist on the show and started getting recognized on the street for her participation.
“[First Voice of Serbia] was what made me decide that I wanted to be a vocalist and a singer, and want to actually study that,” she said. “I wasn’t sure that I was into music theory and conducting, and then it turned. It changed for me.”
She attended music college in Serbia to continue her education and then she ended up moving to the United States to attend the Berklee College of Music.
“My best friend, who I started dating at that time, was already (going to) Berklee, and he was like, ‘You should try. Why don’t you come one summer, audition, and see what happens?’,” she said. “And I obviously didn’t want to pay for it. It was just like, ‘OK, if I get a great scholarship, I can do it, but other than that, no, it’s not worth it.’ But then I did audition, it went really well, and I got in and I got a really good scholarship.”
She moved to Boston and settled in, attending Berklee and eventually starting the Monody music school, which is doing well with between 70 and 75 students learning piano, guitar, voice, and songwriting.
As for how her recording career got going, Nevena was steered toward Frontiers Music by fellow Serbian Srdjan Brankovic of the rock band The Big Deal, who themselves put out a strong rock album back in May called First Bite. Brankovic knew Nevena’s background and asked her if she would be interested in listening to some demo songs from a new project to see if it was something she would like.
“The songs were really catchy and melodic, lots of guitars and all that, making it a little bit more like hard rock,” she said. “But I really loved the songs. I was into it and I could picture myself singing those songs easily. Then I did a little demo, recorded myself singing a song, sent it over, and they liked it.”
After an interview with Frontiers, the label paired Nevena with songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Michael Palace for his melodic pop/rock project and she was the perfect fit for these songs.
While some artists might feel more comfortable singing in their native language, Nevena had a strong grasp of the English language.
“At some point I started writing in English, writing songs in English too,” she said. “I think just living here and studying here influenced me and that was it. I don’t spend much time in Serbia anymore, and I’m not interested in maintaining a career over there. Writing in English became just second nature, I would say.”
Palace, whose band (simply named Palace) also put out a first-rate English-language, album-oriented rock album in 2022 (One 4 the Road), crafted the songs for Frontiers and the project needed a singer. Nevena did a demo for the song “Brand New Heart” and sent it to Palace. He liked it enough to put her on the project, and he and Nevena worked on the songs remotely. The two started working in the spring of this year.
Nevena recorded in the morning before heading to her full-time teaching job. It all came together quickly.
“I had basically two months to record everything and learn the songs, and so it was intense,” she said. “We did it in five weeks, all the songs. (It was) a lot but it was worth it.”
Although the songs arrived with Nevena basically finalized, the two musicians had to work out what key to use and Nevena recorded her vocals and piano and then added backing vocals.
“But other than that, it’s all Mike,” she said.
While Palace can take credit for the songwriting, it is Nevena who breathes life into those songs and gives them life.
“Bulletproof” kicks off the album with some infectious “oh-oh-ohs” that make it fun to sing along with. It also includes some scorching guitar work from Palace. Despite some guitar crunch and a blistering solo, the song isn’t too heavy. It marries rock and pop and finds the sweet spot in between the styles.
Second track, “Bad Sun Rising,” has perhaps the most memorable chorus on the record and more sing-song “whoa-oh-ohs” give it a big, anthemic feel. Palace again crushes the solo, providing some rock and roll grit to this poppy number. He also adds some low vocals that contrast nicely with Nevena’s. It’s one of the album’s biggest highlights, so it’s not surprising that it was the album’s lead single.
“Straight Into Madness” is a fantastic pop/rock song that sounds like a hit from the 1980s without the sheen of an 80s production. It might be the best song on the album. Nevena varies her vocal delivery from the verses to the chorus and again the guitar work from Palace shines, although more for the rhythm work and little flourishes throughout the song than the solo itself, which had been highlights of the previous two tracks. Although it’s not one of the three singles released from the album, this is one I think is worthy of that distinction.
The third single from the album follows. While “Too Late” is a catchy song, I think it sounds less like a single than “Straight Into Madness” to my ears. The song sounds like it was written in the 80s. It’s a bit softer than something you’d find on a Vixen album, but it’s one I could imagine that band performing with a bit more of an edge to it. I would have liked it even more if it was a bit edgier, to be honest, but it’s still a good song.
“Writer’s Block” is a song I can relate to from a lyrical standpoint. Any crunch from the earlier songs is pretty much gone here, as this is a more poppy track with a great chorus.
The second single, “Miracles,” is a ballad that opens with some beautiful piano from Nevena. Every decent melodic rock record needs a ballad, and this fits the bill with excellent vocals. Nevena sings the verses in a lower register than what she’d shown in the album’s first five songs. There’s a reason for that.
“I was actually sick,” she said with a laugh. “I was sick for the last few songs. It was just the last session. My voice was really tired and stuff. I just didn’t want to go crazy with the keys. Better be safe than sorry. But actually, Mike liked it. He was like, ‘You know what? You sound great sick!’”
Palace leans on power chords for “Miracles” and turns in a soaring solo that transform the song from a run-of-the-mill slow song to a classic, 80s-style power ballad.
Speaking of the 1980s, “You Two” has all the hallmarks of a great song from that era with its memorable opening keyboard riff, chugging, upbeat power chords, and earworm chorus. Lyrically, the song is told from the perspective of the odd person out in a love triangle and although the repeated line of “I wish you two the best” sounds nice, and the narrator insists she’ll be just fine, anyone who has been through such a situation knows better.
Nevena said she believes the narrator of the song is actually doing fine, although I’m not convinced that anyone can ever be fine with their significant other taking up with their best friend.
“I think she is a badass woman who just had to accept that (situation),” Nevena said. Obviously it’s not a happy situation and she might be sad, but you know what? She’s like, ‘OK, yes, I thought at least you were the best two things in my life and now I’ve lost it but you know what? Just be happy and goodbye. I’ll never see you again. I’ll move on. You’ll move on. It has a positive vibe too, right? She is able to let go and I think that would be me in that situation, so maybe that’s why I see it that way and perceive it that way. If you’re out of my life, it’s for a reason. Probably it’s better that way. That’s always my philosophy.
“I love that song, by the way. I think we did a good job with that one and it should be a single I feel like.”
She’s not wrong. It’s an excellent song.
“Fire In Me” is one of the crunchier and rockier tracks on the album. Backing vocals on this song are a bit more prevalent than elsewhere on the album. Nevena sings about her hunger to excel and displays confidence in her delivery.
The thing about most rock songs is that they’re not great for dancing, but the pop/rock fusion of “Brand New Heart” make the song one of the more danceable tracks on the record.
“Veil on the Mirror” is a song I could imagine Chvrches doing with a bit more electronics. Like “Fire in Me,” this song comes off as Nevena exerting her confidence, even though it’s not a happy song, lyrically, dealing with the narrator wrestling with the dilemma of whether or not to pursue a relationship with someone she knows is being unfaithful.
I love myself, it’s more than enough
I say ‘I do’ ‘cause I know what I want
Pull down the veil on the mirror
And I say ‘God damn, you look like the winner’
I’m fascinated by “Veil on the Mirror” from a lyrical standpoint. It seems to me to be about a person who knows they’re not going into the best situation, but they’re doing it anyway, going confidently into it with eyes wide open.
“I would say it was a situation in which the person was about to get married,” Nevena said. “The point is, the question is, is that person happy?”
Album closer “Outrageous” has a strong chorus and is one of the more overtly poppy songs on the album. This one could easily be a Miley Cyrus or Christina Aguilera song. One of my favorite Nevena vocal moments on the album is in this song, with the way she phrases the line “I like how with you I lose my mind” and the lyric “I’m gonna rattle cages, be outrageous” is one of my favorites on the record.
Nevena may have arrived late in the year, but this is one of my favorite releases of 2022. It walks a fine line between album-oriented rock and pop, features great vocals and guitar work, and the songs are memorable and chock full of hooks.
I can’t recommend this record highly enough and I can’t wait to see what comes next for Nevena.
Tracklist:
Bulletproof
Bad Sun Rising
Straight Into Madness
Too Late
Writer’s Block
Miracles
You Two
Fire in Me
Brand New Heart
Veil on the Mirror
Outrageous
For more information on Nevena, visit her online at nevenamusic.com and follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok.
For my full interview with Nevena, check out the video below or Episode 91 of the Michael’s Record Collection podcast. The latter includes some brief clips from the record to whet your appetite for this hook-laden pop/rock release. In addition to the album, Nevena talked about her musical origin story, her influences as an artist, competing on the show First Voice of Serbia (on which she was a finalist), why she chose to continue her musical education in the United States at the Berklee College of Music, and more.
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