Thicker than Blood by JAY ROECKER is an alt-rock, pop track with a tone that balances between introspection and inspiration.

The track utilises harmonics brilliantly. It’s nice to hear the technique used in an alt-rock track of this styling. It heightens the tone and adds new texture to the song. It also establishes the ethereal tone and bright, shiny timbre the track employs and later builds on with the use of the synths.

The vocals feel expertly crafted for the tone of the track. They’re passionate yet honest, never straying from the tonal core of the song and feeling connected with the diverse sonic landscape from start to finish. There are lots of subtle techniques used around the lead vocals that help them convey such a compelling emotional journey while also still feeling natural. The subtle autotune is used sparingly but adds to the ethereal tone of the track, heightening the vocals slightly and injecting them with a little extra vigour. It makes them stand out within the track. The synths also help with this, acting like a secondary harmony, they provide a lift to the vocals, following their melody and underscoring them with contrast. On top of this, the quiet harmonies also add emphasis to important sections and ease the transitions between different lyrics. All of these techniques, together allow the vocals to remain subtle and introspective while still having that energy to lead the song from the front.

The light, ethereal synths used in conjunction with the vocals are contrasted by deep synths used later in the track. These two balance each other out nicely adding to the variety of the song’s timbre.

I love the way the track erupts around the line “thicker than blood.” The use of the intensified drumming, along with the power of the synths makes for this proud climax that inspires awe.

Thicker Than Blood is a cohesive sonic journey that uses the diversity of its sound to add emphasis to its wonderful delivery. All the components work together so brilliantly, that it sounds both effortless and meticulously crafted at the same time.