Continuing with the orchestral ventures Cody Fry has been delving into lately, Underground is a beautiful reimagining of one of the tunes on the artist’s first album.

It’s very difficult to properly interpret orchestra music, especially within a pop setting. It either feels too little or too much, and Cody Fry takes both of those takes and blends them together in a truly epic musical journey. The original’s folk feel dominates the vibe for the first half of the song, with some orchestration adding spice to the mix. It’s a wonderful addition, though unexpected in a composition such as ‘Underground’. More colors of the orchestra unveil as the song progresses, revealing far more than chamber strings and some woodwinds as first shown in the chorus. The guitar actually fades away, leaving room for nothing but the orchestra and Cody’s voice. Just when you think the song has taken a total Disney-esque approach, the guitar resumes with blasting horns akin to John Williams’ classic sound in a crescendo that would make all the hairs on your body stand. There’s an extremely cinematic feel to the way Cody Fry writes his orchestra, especially in ‘Underground’. The song then fades back to a guitar to send the listeners away with a final strum, bringing the song full circle back to how it started.

The dynamics, like mentioned before can almost seem minimalistic and bombastic, but the combination of the two is really key for this composition to sound as good as it does. The nostalgic feeling this song emanates thanks to the camp-fire-y chord progression, Cody Fry’s soft voice, and the slow-moving strings are awesome at the very least, and a masterpiece at best.

As expected, Cody Fry outdid himself once more with such an offering, paving the way for his next LP. Single by single, he’s proving to the world that they are not quite ready for what’s next for the artist.

Author: Nicholas Gaudet

Music producer and writer from Dieppe, Canada.