Amber Mark - Cover Queen
It has been a long time coming for Amber Mark, who on January 28th 2022 will release her debut album to the world (Three Dimensions Deep). Since debuting in 2016, Amber’s journey has redefined the word eclectic. It seemed that there were moments of her breaking through and then she would pull back only to come back with something even more fresh. Not sure if those moments of “stop and go” were all her doing, but it seemed like her song with DRAM (“Put You On”) had the necessary steam to push the next banger (“Mixer”), eventually ushering in an album. While fans awaited that moment to materialize, the world was faced with the chaotic year that was 2020. It was here that Amber released some tension with a series of covers, titled “Covered-19”. This series include original music as well, but for the sake of a theme, RNB Nerd shares each of the covers below.
There have been many to cover Nirvana’s Heart-Shaped Box, but something about Amber’s self-produced rendition stands out to this RNB Nerd. Taking a minimal approach, Amber stripped this all the way down and made the classic rock song into a lush, synth-bass heavy R&B song that COULD be a full-fledged single. The melody is so pronounced, and her trend of layered vocals makes this feel expensive. The time was taken on this, and it shows. So gorgeous and such a gem!
My People is Amber’s take on Eddie Kendrick’s My People...Hold On. Eddie is known for being a founder of the iconic group, The Temptations. In time for Juneteenth 2020, America was at a breaking point in its historic, never-ending strife surrounding race. Amber took what felt like a funk anthem straight from the 1970’s and repurposed it into a beautiful, progressive ballad. Amber has the vocal chops, and they were here to shine. The music also deserves a hand, really helping to build Amber up by adding new sounds as the song progresses. The message is loud and clear, united people is what will make the change that we all desperately want to see happen. Considering the somber mood at the time, Amber made something that matched the magnitude of the moment.
Sisqo’s Thong Song is another anthem that has taken on many lives after its first initial parade through public sphere. The campy lyrics are almost redundant because the music is that GOOD. Amber’s take is thumping, whimsical, and delivers some serious futuristic-bossa nova vibes. The background vocals are entrancing, while the primary vocals dances between sexy whispers and confident belts. THIS IS AMBER MARK! The accompanying visual is springtime freedom and romance, so sexy and simple.
The Seeker is short and sweet. Amber easily devours this, painting it in all her color. Only faintly reminiscent of the original. If only there was more to this snippet that we got. The original, by The Who, is undoubtably a song etched into the minds of rock music fans all over the world. It would be interesting to know what die-hard The Who fans think of Amber’s take. Her layered vocals on that iconic chorus take the pitch down and replaces the guitars with drums and claps. This needs more run time, but Amber got the sign of approval from The Who front man, Pete Townshend. That has got to tell you something!
Amber really delivered on all fronts here. As a fan, it has been hard to wait for her time to align and get us to where we are today. But there is no turning back now, Amber is destined for greatness. This set of covers is just one small piece of her amazing legacy. Exciting times to be an Amber Mark fan!
