8/10

Over these last few years, Juno Award nominee Rian Peters, better known as IAMTHELIVING, has established himself as one of the more vibrant names doing the rounds right now. With his clear passion for lively funk and soul grooves across a flurry of dynamic delights in recent times, his tenure to date has been this wildly explorative one as he looks to build a bright and refreshing edge to his chosen genre. And after a cavalcade of releases in recent times, he has now returned to deliver his hotly-tipped debut album 'Nebra Sky', a record that cements that enigmatic legacy of his.

Much like what the previous singles from this effort led us to believe, 'Nebra Sky' revives those classic soul textures and rebrands them for a modern ear. Highlighted by its riveting focus track 'I'll Get It Done', one of his more mainstream offerings to date, it quickly becomes apparent that this new LP also stands as a new beginning for his forward-thinking ambitions. Blending his formative guise with a more progressive and commercially-angled appeal as it plays, his initial full-length makes for a bold and immersive delve into his most electrifying ideas so far.

It has certainly been a busy and acclaimed time for him over the years, but 'Nebra Sky' shows there is still plenty of fresh and enjoyable innovation coursing through him right now. Moving with this swaggering flair from start to finish, IAMTHELIVING has capped off his 2024 with a focused snapshot of exactly the artist he has always looked to be.