The Disclosure brothers, Howard and Guy Laurence made a welcome return last year with “Bang That”, an anthemic cut which served as the first piece of new material since their Grammy nominated, and highly acclaimed debut album Settle was released about two years ago. Just in time for the summer, the electronic duo shared “Holding On” featuring vocals from Gregory Porter, the first proper single lifted from their album, Caracal.
Premiering as Annie Mac’s Hottest Record in the World on BBC Radio 1, “Holding On” encompasses an atmosphere of bright, shimmering production, with a jazzy edge courtesy of some velvety vocals from Grammy-nominated singer Gregory Porter. Surrounded by a bed of sweeping electronics beats that have served as Disclosure’s go to weapon of choice when it comes to the instrumentation, it’s Porter’s jazz influence that gives the song a warmer feel. Those rich, smooth tones seem to balance the computerized sounds with a more natural and human texture.
When it comes to Disclosure, you know you’ll be getting a super catchy and well-crafted pop song; and with “Holding On”, they’ve delivered once again. It’s the kind of song that you’ll hear blaring out of the speakers of each and every club and radio station. Sonically, the track fits perfectly into the pair’s repertoire of house/dance hits, but lyrically, it’s arguably their best track to date. Amongst the rather corny chorus of “shake it” and “it keeps holding on and on”, lie lines like “Weight of love on my shoulders / I thought that it would be easier than this / I found my heart had grown colder” which are not only relatable, but also evoke feeling.
Originally penned to be a simple piano-led ballad by Guy, Porter and long-time collaborator Jimmy Napes (who has also worked alongside Sam Smith), the track was remixed by Howard, who introduced more electronic and garage elements. With this in mind, I feel as if the updated version may actually been a safe bet, in terms of Disclosure’s previous discography. As a result, the duo may have missed a trick with this one, as it would’ve been incredibly interesting to hear how the original song would’ve played out. The simplistic and organic composition may have been exactly what was needed to see their artistry progress further; giving their sound another layer, another dimension.