Review: "Next to Me" - Hunter Blair Ambrose
- Kaitlyn Nicole
- Mar 14, 2024
- 2 min read
Nearly a year after the sleek "Runaway," singer/songwriter Hunter Blair Ambrose returns with her most uninhibited pop vision to date. "Next to Me" is resplendent synth-pop, brilliantly textured with radiant synthesizers, drum machine grooves, and airy 808s. It unfurls almost like a power ballad, building towards a soaring chorus, but pulses with dancefloor energy. That soaring chorus is truly indelible: Ambrose's silky falsetto providing the perfect sweetness to the glossy production. But where the sounds can be intoxicating, Ambrose's delivery and lyricism are clear-eyed devotions. "If you just knew how good it could be," she calls out over the digital buzz. Like a hologram confessing her love, "Next to Me" asks what it would be like to fall in love completely.
"It's on my mind, on replay," the LA-based artist sings on the first verse. Like a glitch in the system, falling in love disrupts her natural order. Over the collage of synths, Ambrose reaches her limit of restraint — system overload! "Put myself asleep, so you're close to me," the "Runaway" singer admits, "if only in my dreams." But the timing never quite seems right for a proper confession, leaving her to linger on the feelings swirling in her mind. But a seemingly unaware love interest is not easy to express feelings for. "I'll be your anything," she repeats, at a loss. It's both an expression of devotion as well as the limitless bounds to which these feelings have spread.
Following her training at Berklee College of Music and the nearby nightclubs she performed at, Hunter Blair Ambrose moved to New York City to collaborate with fellow alumni on her music career. This venture proved fruitful, resulting in the release of Ambrose's debut records: her 2020 EP, Scorpio Rising, and her debut album, Scorpio Season, the following year. Since her debut, Ambrose has been on a non-stop track to multi-talented success. Appearing in several independent films and off-Broadway productions, music is only one facet of the artist's career. Though no official details have been released, Ambrose is preparing for her sophomore album to be released in 2024.
Written By Andy M.
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