Four guys from Toronto, come together to tell stories through reggae music, that can only be Magic! The name of the band could not be more accurate in describing the sound of the music. Vocalist and songwriter Nasri Atweh, guitarist Mark Pelli, drummer Alex Tanas and bassist Ben Spivak were signed by Sony Music International and recorded the debut single, Rude last year. Ever since then the single has received significant airplay and positive responses from a growing number of fans, all over the world.
Magic!’s arrival on the music scene has been explosive, people have already been doing YouTube covers of Rude. About the origins of the band, on the website Nasri stated, “When something is meant to be, you just know it immediately. It’s as if there was a divine plan or universal synergy fusing the right elements together at the right time for the right situation.” Nasri further described the writing process or jamming as easy, all the elements came together, there were no rules and the band mates found a collective muse, to allow listeners to let loose and have a good time.
Magic! has been described as a reggae-pop band. The single, Rude, reminds one of UB40’s Kingston Town. It tells the story of a guy asking a father for his daughter’s hand in marriage. The lyrics are simple and memorable, you will be singing to it after the first chorus. The tune will get you dancing and you will find yourself humming it later.
Rude is a typical feel good song. The music video is comical, romantic and has a retro feel. Fans have described Nasri, who plays the protagonist as a new-wave Jesus, and his lady’s father, the antagonist as Mitt Romney. The single has fared particularly well in international charts. So far it has peaked at no. 2 in Australia and New Zealand and no. 7 in Canada. Sales have gone platinum in Australia.
Magic! has done a soulful, rock cover of Can’t Help Falling In Love. It is enchanting but only a mere two minutes and 10 seconds long! The horror, talk about dangling a carrot in front of someone’s nose! It is quite disappointing that there are not many songs to reference for this band. There are only acoustic versions and live performances of Rude on social media. The good news is that a new single, No Evil will be released soon.
The novelty of this band has made it difficult to find information about other future projects and plans. The band has social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Soundcloud and YouTube. The followings are quite slim, probably because the band goes by ournameisMAGIC! Beware of just typing Magic! into search engines, one will find pictures of wands and sorting hats.
Magic! is definitely a band whose movements are worth watching. The band has a special weapon in Nasri, a Grammy award winning songwriter, who has written for Chris Brown, Justin Bieber, Pitbull and Christina Aguilera. The band’s vision is refreshing, all about the music. Musicians who are passionate about music; that can only be Magic!