With incomparable flair, Rae Lim, the Asian actor, dancer and singer based in London, returns to the dance-pop days of the 90’s with a fabulously fun and bitter-sweetly sentimental single that is at turns groovy, theatrical, and ambitious. Her status as a world-class singer and independent creative is beyond question, and this new single, entitled “If I Were in Love”, serves to cement that claim. The song has a funky, butt-thumping beat, which translates into pure, joyous classic dancefloor pop. The driving bass and other instrumental flourishes meet with a melodic sophistication and emotional depth that Rae Lim knows how to dominate perfectly.
There’s enough musical ear candy to keep fans engaged for the entire summer, particularly snapshots from the history of 90’s pop music – if you loved the best high flying years of Christina Aguilera, you’ll surely adore this groove. Though subtly afflicted, the song has a liberating and empowered feel, and a rousing chorus. Rae Lim is a remarkably powerful artist, personality and persona, all of which comes through in her music.
She always sounds like she knows exactly who she is, what she wants to say and how she wants to say it — and with “If I Were in Love” she lays another rock to her solid foundation for the next phase of her career. Primarily, Rae Lim is a straight shooter; every line she sings, aims for the jugular. She shares personal wisdom gleaned in soul-searching therapy which is unmistakably universal.
For those still feeling the gloom of the world’s current climate, Rae Lim proves that 90’s dance pop is a great place to find some escapism. In recent times, dance music has splintered into numerous sub-genres to varying degrees of satisfaction, while pop has frequently defaulted to dance music, but lately has become entirely bored with itself.
Maybe now, with the entire world in a nervous downswing, a return to those nostalgic golden years might be just be what the doctor ordered. In the meantime Rae Lim is not wasting any time and launches her own throwback party with “If I Were in Love”.
The song deserves to be played in a hot nightclub under a disco ball with hands up and ecstasy in the air. But until they allow that, we can bypass the infectious rhythm, and concentrate on the vocals.
One of Rae Lim’s greatest assets has always been her voice, and hearing her stretch around the arrangement on the bouncy groove of “If I Were in Love”, is pure sonic euphoria. The lyrics get their message across, with phrases that snuggly fit the melody. The choruses are addictive and they carry the radio ready stamp.
Moreover, the songwriting is strong, and the singing is superb – big, but just short of bombastic. Rae Lim takes ownership of her space in this song, and sounds super confident while serving her artistic manifesto for 2020 going forward.
“If I Were in Love” is a pivot for her in terms of sound, as she finds a fresh new way to approach a distinctive genre of electronic dance pop music. And she’s firing on all cylinders!
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