A Song (or two) That Changed My Life: SNACKTIME on  Prince and D’AngeloThe Band Members: Nico Bryant, vocals; Sam Gellerstein, bass, tuba, guitar, sousaphone; Austin Marlow, drums; Larry Monroe Jr., guitar; Eric Sherman, trumpet, percussion; Michael Spearman, keys, trombone; Ben Stocker, tenor saxophoneThe Songs:  Prince’s smoldering power ballad “The Beautiful Ones” from his semi-autobiographical film Purple Rain – a must-see for all who love music —stands as a stellar example of how stark, spacey sonics can coexist with a rich rush of lush harmonics and searing vocal voracity to create a song stoked by all-consuming desire. With his signature attention to detail, Prince crafted a warm, pillowy low end through direct-to-board tracking — a perfect palette for The Purple One to lay his soaring, seductive falsetto, which slides and glides alongside slinky synth vibes before erupting into a killer high-register rock star scream. While the virtuoso’s vast vault of meticulously arranged songs is filled with examples of his genius, it is the fine-tuned emotive maximalism of "The Beautiful Ones” that showcases his role as an artistic visionary and places the multi-instrumentalist maestro of all things musical in the highest of echelons in music history.In a similar lane of late-night intimacy, though one that moves along in its own way with an intoxicating, ambient slow-rolling sway, comes the hypnotic pull of D’Angelo’s “One Mo’ Gin” from his seminal 2000 masterpiece Voodoo. Its thick, velvety arrangements and seductive yearnings are seamlessly smoothed together with the smoldering melodic haze of the Soulquarians— the loose collective with D’Angelo, Questlove, J Dilla, and James Poyser at its core. This legendary collaboration of musicians, who set up creative headquarters in the sonic house that Jimi Hendrix built, Electric Lady Studios, cultivated a love for rhythmic sickness and a sacred devotion to the groove that became central to D’Angelo’s magnetic musicality.The Background: Popping up throughout the City of Brotherly Love during the height of the pandemic, SNACKTIME quickly built a devoted following with their fusion of Philly soul, funk, and the untamed spirit of punk that soon stretched beyond the city's limits.Within a few years, the powerhouse seven-piece went from impromptu outdoor performances in open-air spaces like Rittenhouse Square to showstopping appearances at festivals including Lollapalooza and the Newport Folk Festival, while also sharing bills with artists such as Mt. Joy, Portugal. The Man, and Fitz and The Tantrums.Their debut studio EP, THIS IS DANCE MUSIC, produced by Philadelphia-based Grammy-winning alt-rock alchemist Will Yip (Turnstile, Code Orange), further expanded the polyphonic band’s reach, leading to crossover opportunities including a run as the in-studio band for They Call It Late Night with Jason Kelce.

With the release of their single “Can’t Imagine Why You’d Stay,” a debut full-length studio album on the horizon, and a tour supporting Devon Gilfillian, band members Sam Gellerstein and Nico Bryant find themselves revisiting two songs that are imprinted in their memory and have made a lasting mark on their songwriting: Prince's "The Beautiful Ones" and D'Angelo's "One Mo' Gin." The Stories: Prior to exploring the treasure trove of Prince's sprawling canon, Sam Gellerstein’s connection to The Purple One’s work was sporadic. That changed following the icon’s passing in 2016, which prompted a deep dive into the artist’s legendary catalog and his timeless funk-rock cinematic drama.“I did not grow up on Prince, so when he passed, I started to listen and then became obsessed with his history, live performances, and albums,” explains Gellerstein. “I first heard ‘The Beautiful Ones’ right after Prince’s death while watching the movie Purple Rain. As with most songs I enjoy, I listened to the textures and the soundscape and found it to be very interesting — sexy but pensive, almost brooding but also optimistic. When the song opens up after the build and explodes is one of the most powerful moments on the record.”With repeated listens, however, the song gradually revealed an emotional flow that kept his mind circling:“I found the song to have more of a sadness to it. Less of a confident ask and more of a pleading. A deeper, more sorrowful pleading than the trope of ‘begging on my knees.’ As electric and larger than life as he was, I’m sure he was in a lot more pain and loneliness than his character let on.”

This combination of heart-wrenching lyrics intermingled with Prince’s sleek sonics and immaculate ear essentially altered Gellerstein's  songwriting:“The way the orchestration and arrangement builds slowly until it swells and explodes in the middle, leading to the long, passionate outro shows the importance of how a simple phrase can carry a song. Just that line: ‘Cause I want you…’” Gellerstein explains, noting that the impact was enough to incorporate a bit of it within SNACKTIME’s super slick funk meets soul style. “We have a song coming out on our debut record called ‘Cold/Warm’ which is directly influenced by this exact structure.”This penchant for midnight musings is also heard as a musical throughline for vocalist Nico Bryant, albeit channeled through a different kind of sultry, laconic, and slightly behind-the-beat delivery. It hit with full force when a bout of tender heartbreak flipped the script on how he initially heard the song.

“The first time I heard ‘One Mo’ Gin’ by D’Angelo, I was in the ninth grade,” Nico says. “My initial response was literally, ‘...this is a long ass intro.’ I just wasn’t ready to digest it, or the rest of the Voodoo record for that matter. It was just a bit too deep for my fourteen-year-old self to wrap my mind around at the time.”

What did stay with him, however, was the harmony:“There was also this familiar feeling of going to church with my older relatives — how those hymns moved slow as molasses and had a very specific, weighted sound to them. But I was moving too fast at the time to receive it all. I was more concerned with moonwalking and such.”That breakbeat energy ground down to a halt when heartbreak finally caught up to Bryant, shifting his relationship with the song from a steadfast backdrop to a longing lifeline:“Three months after a breakup — that I felt was imminent, but I didn’t want to happen — I swore we were gonna be high school sweethearts. When the separation came, I spent a good amount of time trying to get back together, or at least in the same room, to no avail. Then, after a long conversation, that young lady and I officially went no-contact.I am an emotional being with a tender heart, and I take things hard, so this took its toll on me.”Isolated in that silence, he heard D’Angelo call:

“One night, I felt as though I was faced with a choice: either press the ‘game over’ button or listen to this song on repeat until I fell asleep. I chose the latter and cried my eyes out as D’Angelo spoke to his muse in hopes of seeing her again and potentially reuniting. And it all clicked not just musically but emotionally. His yearning to catch up on lost time with his long-lost lover felt eerily similar to my own desire to see my old flame again. There was a vulnerability that he exuded naturally. All of this felt like a warm hug and good conversation from a big cousin telling me he knows what I’ve been through.

“From that day forth, my ears and heart became open to the rest of the Voodoo album. I then embarked on a long journey to find out everything about D’s life story, musical creations, and everything in between.More than anything, even if I didn’t realize it then, I wanted to create art that made me feel like I did that night. Something so soulful, meaningful, raw, and honest that it may have saved and/or changed a life; even if the topic may be deemed simple by some.”

As Bryant’s obsession deepened, he shifted his focus toward sound construction and composition:“Musically, this whole album was the final piece of my harmony training. I’ve been obsessed with 3- and 4-part harmonies since I was younger, with Commissioned, Boyz II Men, and Jodeci being the biggest influences on my stylings. But once I heard D’Angelo, everything I knew about harmony shifted and adjusted. It was so churchy yet hip with jazz flairs. As if Prince was stoned like Sly. He has such an understanding of the vast universe of music, and although my dreams of being his apprentice never came true, I still was able to learn so much from him over the years.”

Additionally, Bryant connected with D’Angelo’s art of soul parlando, that rare ability to melt lyrical melody into speech:“What I’ve picked up about this song is everything feels warm and lived in. There’s a certain cohesion in all that’s happening. Nothing feels out of place or sticks out in a way that’s jarring. Lyrically, his language is pure, lucid, and straightforward. Like he knew exactly what he wanted to say to this woman and didn’t add any sort of fluff, and there are certain phrasings that only he could construct. It feels like he sings how he talks…“...and the musical bed itself complements it perfectly — uncluttered and smooth,” says Bryant, adding that the production perfectly captures that intimate, ultra-smooth sound. “The way the track was mixed makes you feel like you’re in the room (shoutout to Russ ‘The Dragon’ Elevado). So much so, I can surmise that there have been plenty of women on the receiving end of their listening systems of choice, imagining themselves to be D’s muse.”

More than anything, immersing himself in the track reinforced a creative lesson Bryant would later carry into his own music: sparsity is often the best sonic space:“I’ve realized that it doesn’t always take a whole lot. Sometimes it’s the simplicity of it all that helps a song breathe and live. If there were a lot happening, this song wouldn’t have the same impact. The focus is on the vocals and the lyrics, and the players provide the necessary vessel for the track to be delivered. So, while it took me a minute to get to that place of discipline musically, I feel now I know when a song is getting too cluttered, and the heart of it is getting lost in the sonic sauce.”

These late-night sensual soundscapes didn't remain trapped in his head as mere influences. Much like Gellerstein drew from Prince’s burning-with-desire, seductive sonic drama, Bryant routed D'Angelo's sultry, midnight-hued desires of longing into SNACKTIME's forthcoming debut record.“There’s one song on the upcoming SNACKTIME album called “Find Her Lovin’ Again.” It’s cut from the same raw emotional cloth of longing and lovelessness, although our delivery is more rooted in a bit of a rock-soul sound. I wanted to exude that same sort of energy of singing how I spoke, saying exactly what I felt in a way that cuts through every possible barrier.”

One More Thought: Gellerstein on Prince’s Musicality

“Something so magical about this song is the restraint it shows in its orchestration and composition while still feeling huge and expansive. The delay thrown on the Linn drums gives such a nice bed for the Oberheims to sit on top of, adding a bit more with every section while slowly building towards that huge, impassioned moment for Prince to ask the question: ‘Do you want me? ‘Cause I want you.’ All capped off with some classic, powerful Prince guitar soloing [most recognized on the full album version].

“Another huge reason this song is so special is that, while Prince typically comes from a place of supreme confidence and assuredness when it comes to sex and love, this track seems bare, unsure, and anxious—a feeling I think most of us normal people on earth have felt and can deeply empathize with.

“Purple Rain is obviously the quintessential Prince record, but to me, this is the definitive power ballad of that album.”

Photo Credit:  Anthony MulcahyThe post A Song (or two) That Changed My Life: SNACKTIME on  Prince and D’Angelo first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.