Nathan Johnston & The Angels of Libra drop xmas version of tune
Hot on the heels of their self-titled album Nathan Johnston & The Angels of Libra released on Waterfall Records in November, Irish singer-songwriter Nathan Johnston and Berlin-based retro soul outfit Angels of Libra release a digital double-single in the form of album track “The Nine Angel Choirs” with an exclusive X-mas-tinged live rendition of the same track called “Nine Angel Choirs for Christmas”.
“The Nine Angel Choirs” is a love song in every sense of the word. Johnston wrote it for his girlfriend Magdalena – a name often thought to be derived from Mary Magdalene, so he wanted to try and capture this sort of Godly essence within the lyrics. The song focuses on how it feels to completely give yourself to another – and when love takes over, nothing can be more beautiful.
As Johnston states: “After we had recorded the song, we decided to do some overdubs, starting with the Librettes singing backing vocals and then our drummer, Lucas Kochbeck played some sleigh bells on top.
One night, when our producer showed the results of our efforts to his neighbour while listening over tea in his kitchen, they said it felt like a Christmas song and we should rewrite the lyrics and release it in December.
So, taking the advice, myself and Dennis Rux sat down and reworked the song – adding a few new touches and also re-recording a new live filmed session with the band in his studios in Hamburg”.
The result is still very much a love song – but also (with tongue & cheek) takes a new approach to say that Christmas wouldn’t be as special without having the ones we love around us. And ultimately, that’s what Christmas is all about…
“Nine Angel Choirs For Christmas” out digitally on Dec. 9th via Waterfall
