"It's Not Over" is a song recorded by American

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

singer

Curtis Harding Curtis Harding (born June 11, 1979) is an American singer and songwriter. Primarily a soul artist, his "slop 'n' soul" style carries the influence of genres including blues, gospel, psychedelia, R&B, and rock. His first album, ''Soul Power'' (201 ...

. It was released digitally as a single on June 5, 2018, by

Anti- Anti- is an American record label founded in 1999 as a sister label to Epitaph Records. While Epitaph's focus has mostly been on punk rock, Anti-'s roster includes gospel (Mavis Staples), country (Merle Haggard), hip hop (Sage Francis, The Cou ...

and

Epitaph Records Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most acts signed to the label were punk and pop punk acts, while there are many post-hardcore and emo bands ...

in advance of Harding's tour opening for

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. His style incorporates elements of rock, blues, soul, R&B, funk, jazz, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, pop and folk. Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male Roc ...

. Anchored in soul with

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

and

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

flourishes, the song is optimistic: "You may think it's over, but it's not the end," Harding sings. Music critics commended his vocals and the song's composition and

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

Composition

"It's Not Over" is built out of a bassline with

-tinged guitar and organ; brief

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

parts add to the song's

nature. Called "buoyant" and "soulful" and featuring an upbeat

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other with ...

section, the song is representative of Harding's sound:

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...

augmented with attributes from psychedelia and a "judicious approach to arrangement." Compared to his previous songs, some compositional choices made "It's Not Over" a smoother tune—like what reviewer Russell Rockwell called "oozing lava lamp riffs", "velvety backing vocals", and a "discotheque vibraphone riff". A Spanish-language music website wrote that the song "seduced us with elegant sound waves that flirt with the psychedelic". Lyrically, the song is uplifting, and brass hits add to the positive tone. As Harding accepts the exhaustion of those in need of reprieve, he encourages everyone to carry on: "Though life has its struggles / And its ups and downs / See, you are the fighter, baby / It's only the first round." His delivery was compared to his contemporaries

Michael Kiwanuka Michael Samuel Kiwanuka (born 3 May 1987) is a British singer-songwriter and record producer who is signed with Polydor Records. His 2012 debut album, '' Home Again'', went gold in the United Kingdom and his second album, '' Love & Hate'', debu ...

and

Leon Bridges Todd Michael "Leon" Bridges (born July 13, 1989) is an American soul singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his 2015 song " Coming Home", which received regular airplay and was also a Top 10 Most Viral Track on Spotify. Brid ...

Release and promotion

As a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

, "It's Not Over" was released jointly by

and

on June 5, 2018. The single cover shows a recumbent Harding wearing a

Gucci Gucci (, ; ) is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house based in Florence, Italy. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and branding to Coty, Inc. for fragrance ...

suit. "It's Not Over" marked Harding's first release of new music since his studio album ''

Face Your Fear ''Face Your Fear'' is the second studio album by American singer Curtis Harding, released October 27, 2017, by Anti-. Reception Mark Deming writes, "Curtis Harding can write and sing like a soul man with a mind of his own, and here he sounds ev ...

'' in October 2017, songs from which he had performed the previous day in a concert in Mexico. The release of "It's Not Over" came in advance of Harding's concert tour supporting

, which began in Poland on June 8. Harding performed "It's Not Over" at some of the venues supporting Kravitz.

Critical reception

In '' Clash'', Robin Murray wrote, "It's a driven return, a solid return, one infused by a future-facing sense of what 'soul' can mean in 21st-century songwriting."

Oregon Public Broadcasting Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) is the primary television and radio public broadcasting network for most of the U.S. state of Oregon as well as southern Washington. OPB consists of five full-power television stations, dozens of VHF or UHF tra ...

's Kelsey Greco wrote that the song "has an undeniable groove that will pull you to the dance floor, all the while blending in progressive production choices that keep close listeners intrigued." The alternative culture website Afropunk called the song "an impossibly groovy romantic jam filled with soul, love, and desperation, because love is pretty much all about making an ass of yourself." The website said the song stemmed from classic soul music while "Harding's soaring vocals are still somehow refreshing and original." A Spanish-language site said, "Curtis Harding showed us what it means to compose and create soul in our time."

Release history

References

{{authority control 2018 singles 2018 songs Curtis Harding songs Epitaph Records singles