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Local band releases first single

By Megan Lewis
News-Times

With their new single “Waves”, Beaufort based band Now or Never has captured a stormy night at the beach in music.

The band comprises songwriters and vocalists Tiffany Elaine and Fernando Rivera, who wrote “Waves” in response to “the chaos of life and the ups and downs we all go through” according to information included with their DC.

The recording itself, produced at TeraNote Studios in Morehead City, is clean and professional allowing the artistry of the duo to shine.

The melody opens with soft piano notes, echoing the front of a storm rolling in.  With the arrival of Ms. Elaine’s breathy vocals, the wind blows in guitar, chimes and drum.  The instrumentation, which stays simple for the duration of the piece, nonetheless gives it a complex, layered feel that matches the tone perfectly.

It’s when Mr. Rivera begins a soft rapping lyric, however, that the tune really begins to rage like the stormy lyrics.

Truly, Ms. Elain is the air and Mr. Rivera is the fire of the band, as it says on the band’s website, nowornevermusic.com.

Both members’ voices expertly complement one another.  The soft rock, bluesy sound from Ms. Elaine combines with Mr. Rivera’s rap cadences perfectly as the rhythm builds to a crescendo that, while not exactly the heart racing, still has the feel of rough water, crashing thunder and hair-raising lightening.

The last heartbeat drumbeats of the song give it a poignant finish, matching the heart rate of someone watching the storm on the beach.

Aside from the obvious artistry and crisp vocal talent, the piece also benefits from lyrics with pop-style repetition that prove easy for audiences to sing along with in their cars or when the band performs it on stage, even if they are unfamiliar with the song.

At the July 28 release party for the single at Cru Wine Bar in Beaufort, audiences proved this.

“A lot of people were singing, which was really cool,” Ms. Elaine said.

Overall, “Waves” is a strong first outing from a promising local band. 

The single is available for purchase on Apple Music and during the band’s live shows.

Now or Never sold approximately 15 discs at their release party, which was overall an “amazing” night, Ms. Elaine said.

“We packed the place,” she said, “people received our music so well.”

The band’s next performances can be found on the Nightlife calendar on Page 7B.

Now or Never plans to release a full album in October or November.  It is in the process of adding a few more songs, Ms. Elaine noted.

For more about the band, visit their website fernandtiff.com.

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Meet Fern and Tiff

Fern and Tiff is an original pop-rock-contemporary-easy listening-uplifting music group out of Beaufort, NC.

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