Jesusfreakhideout.com: Nathan Oswalt, "SHADOWLANDS (2022 Demo)

JFH Indie Review

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Nathan Oswalt
SHADOWLANDS (2022 Demo) - Single

Artist Info: Discography
Street Date: October 25, 2024
Style: Indie Pop
Official Site: YouTube Page
Buy It: iTunes

Nathan Oswalt is a singer/songwriter that Jesusfreakhideout has had the pleasure to review on multiple occasions now. His newest release is actually from 2022. This is the first song he ever recorded and was used in a memorial for his grandmother's funeral. While this version of "SHADOWLANDS" is a demo, it still sounds great. This is a simple recording that features mostly piano, Oswalt's vocals, bass, and a few other light additions, but it's also fitting for such an emotionally charged song.

In the homage to his grandmother, Oswalt admits the pain and grief of loss, but relishes in the knowledge that he will see his grandmother again one day in Heaven. The song is a sad one, but it's simultaneously overflowing with hope. The lyrics are something that we can all relate to; it's comforting to me listening to it right now as I recently lost a close friend. The lyrics, "And when I leave this world behind me; when I finish this race that I've run, I'll see you and Jesus standing there saying, 'Welcome home. Well done'," are particularly comforting. However, Oswalt sums it all up when he sings, "This hurts so bad I can barely stand, but I believe that this is not the end and I'll see you on the other side of these shadowlands. Where there'll be no more hard goodbyes, no more heartache, no more tears to cry. So, I'll see you later; until we meet again," in the chorus. It's a beautiful song musically and lyrically and the simplicity of it lets all of this shine.

Nathan Oswalt has shown himself to be an excellent songwriter with a lot of versatility in sound. This song proves that it's a natural gift. It's a lovely and meaningful tribute that was very personal to him but can resonate with any others that hear it. Oswalt is currently working on a revised version of "SHADOWLANDS" and I, for one, can't wait to hear the treatment he gives this song, given his other musical output. Those looking for a song on loss for yourself or a loved one with a Christian perspective, I'd highly recommend sharing Oswalt's newest (oldest) song.

- Review date: 11/8/24, written by Michael Weaver of Jesusfreakhideout.com

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JFH Staff's Second Opinion

Nathan Oswalt is one of the more promising newcomers to the independent Christian pop scene. His singles so far have been uplifting, joyful, catchy, and very well-written. Even his demos sound good, as evidenced by the 2022 demo version of his song, "SHADOWLANDS." The song is mature in its handling of death and grief from the perspective of a believer in Christ, and the style of the song is appropriately more mellow. The piano and quiet, down-tempo drum beat are a really nice backdrop for Oswalt's reminiscing about his departed grandmother, while some strings come in later to remind us that death isn't the end for Christians, but rather the start of life on the other side. There is some barely noticeable room for better production (which I believe is to be remedied for an official release at some point), but even in its current state, "SHADOWLANDS" is a lovely song and further reason to keep being excited about the future of Oswalt's musical journey. - Review date: 10/23/24, written by Scott Fryberger of Jesusfreakhideout.com

Record Label: None

Album length: 1 track: 3 minutes, 24 seconds

Street Date: October 25, 2024

Buy It: iTunes

SHADOWLANDS (2022 Demo) (3:24)
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Jesus Freak Hideout (Michael Weaver): This is an impressive sounding single for an early demo. Did you have any experience at all before you put this together?

Nathan Oswalt: I had just started working in-studio with Ian Manubens (who also helped produce "OUTRUN" and "WHO KNOWS") when my grandmother moved out of her old house to live with us (me and my parents) for the last few months of her life (she had been fighting lung cancer for 20 years or so). As someone on the autism spectrum, I've found that writing songs is an excellent and constructive way for me to process, organize, and express my thoughts. I knew that I wanted to write and record a song that accurately communicated my emotions and feelings about Grandma's impending passing. My parents and Ian both agreed - in fact, it was Mom & Dad who actually suggested that we (Ian and I) finish the song in time for Grandma's funeral so that it could be playing in the memorial service slideshow.

We had no idea how long Grandma had before she left this world for Heaven, so we got right down to business. Over the next few months, we met frequently at Ian's home studio in Washougal, recording and editing vocals and adding some extra instrumentation to what I had already previously recorded in my bedroom studio. We ultimately managed to complete a kinda-rough-but-still-deeply-moving-and-beautiful demo track just days before Grandma finished her race to the arms of the LORD. From there, I added the demo to the memorial slideshow (which I was also tasked with creating), along with my own edit/remix of Chris Rice's rendition of "How Great Thou Art" (Grandma's favorite hymn), and that was all finished a few days before the memorial service.

JFH (Michael): If you don't mind my asking, what was the reaction from your family to this song? I would imagine that it's something that carried deep meaning for everyone.

Nathan: My mom (and Grandma's daughter) actually helped me a tiny bit with the lyric-writing process, so I decided to give her partial songwriting credit on this one. My music teacher at the time, Steve Hotra, also played a small role in the song's lyrical composition, so he, too, has his name in the songwriting credits. When I finally finished the lyrics and played the song on the piano for Mom & Dad, they both loved it! If I remember correctly, I think I showed the song to Grandma as well a few weeks before her passing, and she thought that it was beautiful. When the demo recording of "SHADOWLANDS" played at Grandma's funeral service for the second half of the slideshow I had made for the event, pretty much everyone in attendance - even a few relatives who didn't believe in Jesus at the time (some of whom still have yet to accept Him now) - were impressed and profoundly moved by the song. They approached me afterwards to let me know just how deeply the track resonated with them.

JFH (Michael): This is obviously a deeply personal song, but it's also one that will resonate with anyone experiencing loss. What was the determining factor in deciding to release this song now?

Nathan: I wasn't initially planning on releasing the demo to streaming platforms - I felt it was too rough of a recording to be taken seriously, both sonically and lyrically. Ultimately, I chose to re-master the demo on DistroKid and release it as a stand-alone single less than 3 years later. There were two primary reasons behind my decision…

First (and most importantly), a whole lot of people in my life have experienced the loss of a loved one in 2024, and I wanted to provide them with some meaningful comfort and encouragement beyond just a "sending my condolences & prayers" text or letter. I still had the demo saved on my MacBook Pro hard drive, and I felt convicted to release it - despite my reservations - as a demonstration of authentic love and compassionate creative care for my grieving friends and acquaintances. So I promptly "exhumed" the demo from its hard drive "sarcophagus", "cleaned it up" a bit using DistroKid's free online mastering service, and uploaded it to its "final resting place" on streaming services.

Second (and on a far less important note), a long time had passed since my last new single release ("WHO KNOWS"; in April), and "SHADOWLANDS (2022 Demo)" was the only recording that I had in my arsenal at the time that was even remotely high-quality enough for me to put out there. It's not exactly a "new" song for me, but it's definitely "new" to audiences on Spotify, Apple Music, and other streaming platforms. As a fully-independent artist with relatively little experience or promotion, keeping listeners engaged (and attracting new ones) is a real challenge. Obviously, it's more about Jesus than it is about myself, but hey, a music artist's got to spread the word about their creative endeavors somehow, right?

JFH (Michael): What was the idea of "shadowlands" in this context? Is it meant as a C.S. Lewis reference (the biopic of his life)?

Nathan: The story behind this song actually goes way back to October 2019. I had been chatting one morning with my mom and younger sister (who now lives in Arizona) at breakfast, and for whatever reason, we started discussing the topic of losing a loved one. My mom shared C.S. Lewis' story - of how he lost his wife Joy to bone cancer in 1960 just three years after their marriage - and then quoted his book A Grief Observed, which he wrote after her passing. I don't remember the exact quote, but I do remember the message it conveyed: that the pain we feel after losing loved ones is because of the joy we felt while they were still with us.

A couple of hours later, I heard the news about TobyMac (one of my all-time favorite artists and artistic influences) tragically losing his oldest son, Truett, to a drug overdose - and inspiration for a new song immediately struck. My heart just shattered for Toby and his family, even though I didn't know any of them personally, and so I quickly wrote and posted to YouTube a video of myself at the piano performing a first-draft rap version of "SHADOWLANDS" over the next three hours of that day.

I later changed the song from a pop-rap tune to more of an R&B/adult-contemporary-influenced ballad, and expanded its message - which had previously been exclusively from the perspective of a parent mourning the tragic death of their child - to apply to those who have lost a parent, a spouse, a friend, or simply anyone else who has ever experienced the difficult sting of losing someone they deeply care about.

And yes, the song's title is indeed a reference to C.S. Lewis. ;)

JFH (Michael): What plans do you have for the new version you're currently working on? Are you looking to keep it simple, or to add more instrumentation? What about the arrangement itself?

Nathan: When I first wrote "SHADOWLANDS", my songwriting skills were still very much in development. I believe that I have improved a whole lot since then - particularly as a lyricist - so the "final version" might be significantly different on that front. Production-wise, though, I do plan to keep things very, very simple - keyboards/piano, a muffled drum beat, maybe some synth and bass pads in the background, and of course, a string section. There may be some noticeable changes to the song's arrangement as well, but overall, the core message of "SHADOWLANDS" will remain the same. I probably won't be making too many drastic changes to the chorus, either - maybe a couple of minor lyric adjustments, but that part will likely deviate the least from the demo version.

I've been writing a whole lot of new songs, and at this point, I might have enough material for TWO whole album projects. I know the overall theme that I'm aiming for with my first album (which I'm close to completing the songwriting/composition process for as of right now), so there's a decent chance that the final version of "SHADOWLANDS" will either be (1) a stand-alone single following the release of album one or (2) one of the tracks on album two, LORD willing.

JFH (Michael): Would you mind sharing a happy memory of your grandmother? Maybe a favorite scripture of her's that inspired you or a lesson she taught you that you still carry today?

Nathan: My grandmother came to saving faith in Christ much later in her life - shortly before I was born in 2001, if I remember correctly. Her greatest struggle during her walk with the LORD was the slow process of fully internalizing that the death and resurrection of Jesus was definitively more than enough to cover all of her sins and brokenness, and that she didn't need to do anything else special to somehow "earn" God's forgiveness and favor. His mercy and grace are neither deserved nor earned, but freely given through faith in what Jesus has already done on the behalf of all who turn to Him for salvation and eternal life.

It was shortly after my birth that Grandma was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. The doctors gave her 18 months to live - and by the miraculous power and grace of God, she lived for approximately 20 years after her diagnosis. She got to watch me, my sister, and my two younger cousins grow to adolescence, and she thoroughly enjoyed every minute of every day spent with her grandkids, never allowing one single opportunity to go to waste.

A survivor of World War II who grew up in Nazi Germany as a child (she even had an unexploded bomb in her backyard at one point!) and moved to the U.S. following the conclusion of the global conflict, she quickly resolved to make a better life for herself in an unfamiliar new place, and ultimately succeeded due to her relentless tenacity and perennially determined spirit. From her arrival in the States as an immigrant child (from a former enemy nation, no less) to her Heavenly departure as an official American citizen, mother of two, and grandmother of four - Ingrid Salter was (and still is, in my personal opinion) a shining model of what it truly means to live out the American dream.

As one of the most outspoken and opinionated individuals that I have ever known, Grandma always expressed deep gratitude for the many rights, values, and freedoms that America was founded upon, and that she enjoyed during her many years of life in the States. Even after she surrendered her life to Christ and started looking forward to her true and eternal home with the LORD in Heaven, she remained resolute in her appreciation for her temporal nation of residence - and her newfound faith only reinforced her conservative worldview. I sincerely hope and pray that President-elect Trump comes to authentic repentance and sincere faith in Jesus if he hasn't already done so - partially because I'm 100% certain that Grandma would be absolutely THRILLED to welcome him to the party at Heaven's gates! (*Insert laughing-so-hard-I'm-crying emoji*.)