Primary Colours MAGIC!

• 1 Have It All 03:37
• 2 Lay You Down Easy 02:43
• 3 Gloria 03:46
• 4 Red Dress 03:22
• 5 No Regrets 03:32
• 6 Dance Monkey 04:28
• 7 No Sleep 02:47
• 8 I Need You 03:51
• 9 Primary Colours 03:23
• 10 The Way God Made Me 03:45
• Total Runtime 35:14

Info for Primary Colours

Canadian reggae-poppers MAGIC! are back with their sophomore release, „Primary Colours!“ Over the past two years MAGIC! has established itself as a bonafide sensation thanks to its undeniably catchy sound, superlative songwriting, and masterful musicianship. Now the band - lead vocalist and chief songwriter Nasri, guitarist Mark Pelli, drummer Alex Tanas, and bassist Ben Spivak - has released a new single, the Caribbean-tinged “Lay You Down Easy” (featuring Sean Paul). MAGIC! is also gearing up for the July release of its new album, Primary Colours, which finds the band further displaying its reggae influences and pop smarts. “The ultimate goal was to make an album that is groovy and fun,” Nasri says. “We are embracing ourselves now. We've actually found our identity and have really gotten to know each other as friends and fellow musicians. We had only known each other a short time when we made our debut album.”

Produced by Nasri and Adam Messinger (who as Grammy-winning production duo the Messengers, have scored hits for Justin Bieber, David Guetta, Shakira, Chris Brown, Pitbull, and Christina Aguilera), and with production assists from Pelli and Tanas, Primary Colours is the sound of a band that has come into its own. “Each of these guys is a phenomenal musician and they all stepped up in various capacities, whether it was writing, playing, or producing,” says Nasri.

The creative bond that the band members have developed is palpable in the good-natured bounce of the music on Primary Colours, as are the rhythms the four have soaked up through their worldwide travels. Last year they toured as first support for Maroon 5 and performed headlining shows across the U.S., South America, Asia, and Europe. “We definitely had that spiritual connection to the cultures we visited,” Nasri says. “We’re all natives of Canada, but we have different heritages. But when we get together, the guitar and the bass come out and we start to go with it. When we were in the studio making Primary Colours, the more rock-oriented songs started to give way to the groovier songs, and we thought, ‘This is us, We are this fusion band.’ It’s like home for me. I’ll make a song and if something doesn’t feel right, I’ll try a reggae melody or beat and it suddenly feels great. It’s like I took reggae on a couple of dates and it went really well and now we’re going steady.”

In the time between making Don’t Kill the Magic and Primary Colours, Nasri also gave himself a musical education, diving into records by reggae stars Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, and Peter Tosh. He also immersed himself in The Beatles catalog and records by Paul Simon. “Growing up we had no money, so I only listened to the radio,” he explains. “It wasn't until my ’20s that I started getting into Stevie Wonder and early Police. I didn’t know anything about The Beatles, just the hits. Now I know 70 of their songs. And I’ve realized, ‘Oh, I'm getting all of this from Paul McCartney.’ And I think being in this band with these super-talented guys - Mark and Ben are both jazz musicians - has given me more of an internal license to explore things. I feel like a kid in MAGIC!. It’s very pure.”

On Primary Colours, MAGIC! effortlessly spin out memorable melodies in a variety of styles, like the flirtatious “Lay You Down Easy,” the sultry ’50s-tinged “Red Dress,” the synth-pop tunes “No Sleep” and “Gloria” (the latter with its comical story of a hapless guy and his cheating girlfriend) while never straying too far from their signature reggae sound. Horns make an appearance on several songs, including “Have It All,” which the band wrote in The Philippines. “No Regrets” and “I Need You” are heartfelt ballads that show another dimension to Nasri’s songwriting. The closing track, the swaggy “The Way God Made Me,” features an urban reggae beat and finds Nasri channeling his inner Rastafarian in his vocals.

Then there’s the title track “Primary Colours,” which refers to Nasri’s need to start over not only in his personal life (which is where he draws lyrical inspiration from) but also when it came to making the record. “We were getting really complicated in the studio,” he says. “And I said, ‘Guys, we need to simplify. Our fans are going to be confused. Let’s start with a hook and then build on top of that.’ So we were able to strip everything back to its primary colors and then add layers of musicality. And I had to get in touch with myself and enjoy making pop music again. Luckily the guys can make simple ideas sound soulful and musical.”

Nasri’s goal for Primary Colours is also simple. “I want people to laugh and cry and dance,” he says. “I want people to have fun at our shows. And when it's a serious song, they'll get serious with us. But when it's not, what are they doing? Are they just standing there watching us? Or are they with us? I want people to be with us. I want them to move their bodies and have fun.”

MAGIC!
Noted producer and songwriter Nasri (aka Nasri Atweh) moved from behind the scenes and into the spotlight with Magic!. a group fusing pop, R&B, and reggae that features him as lead vocalist. Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Nasri first found success when he teamed with Adam Messinger to form the production and songwriting team the Messengers, who scored hits for Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Christina Aguilera, and Pitbull, among others. In 2012, Nasri was eager to make music of his own, and began working up tunes with guitarist and fellow songwriter Mark Pelli. Their first song was a catchy fusion of reggae, pop, and R&B called 'Rude,' and the song fell together so naturally they felt it happened like magic. Properly inspired, Nasri and Pelli decided to name their new group Magic!, and recruited bassist Ben Spivak and drummer Alex Tanas to round out the lineup. In the fall of 2013, after a tour as a support act for Matisyahu, Magic! signed a deal with Sony Music International, and 'Rude' became the group's first single. The song was a Top Five hit in Australia and New Zealand, and rose to number nine in their native Canada. In April 2014, Magic! contributed a new track, 'This Is Our Time (Agora e a Nossa Hora),' to One Love, One Rhythm: The 2014 FIFA World Cup Official Album, and the group's first full album, Don't Kill the Magic, arrived in July 2014. (Mark Deming, AMG)

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