by Philip Moss

What is ‘light’?

A word that conjures a spectrum of interpretations, to Natalie Bergman, it is entangled in the connotations of childhood faith. A faith that, when told that her father and stepmother had been killed as she was about to step onto the stage at New York’s Radio City Hall, was tested beyond what she could ever have imagined. But for the songwriter, ‘light’ also meant hope. And the outcome of this faith and hope combining is her special new single, Shine Your Light On Me.

If Bergman’s voice sounds familiar, that is because – for the last decade – she has fronted the duo, Wild Belle, with her brother. But Shine Your Light On Me presents her vision through a different prism. Born out of the deepest possible hurt, the songwriter has conjured a message of warmth. Its choral refrain is the perfect display of when heartfelt words and earmworm melody combine – tonally landing somewhere between Lee Hazelwood’s work with Nancy Sinatra, and Duffy’s Rockferry. But this second single from her debut LP is rooted in the gospel framework, and the outcome is an uplifting show of strength and resilience – which was found in the worst of moments.

Debut album, Mercy, is out on 7th May through Third Man Records.

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