Nicole Markson

Nicole Markson – Higher Than Heaven (single)
JUNE 11, 2018 BY THE ARK OF MUSIC 0 COMMENTS

Her story begins like many singer/songwriters’ stories, though it quickly turns into something much different, something unique and inspiring.

New York, New York’s, Nicole Markson, has loved music since she could walk. By her teenage years she was a vocal student, musician and songwriter already recording her own songs. Before long, you could find her voice on jingle commercials and in cabaret performances.

Though she would go on to graduate from New York University with a degree in Theater & Communications, it wouldn’t be long before she found herself diverted from her passion as she became involved in the worthy endeavors of marriage, motherhood, and a family business. And this is where things took “the” turn.

In 2009, Nicole was diagnosed with breast cancer. The fight was on, and after a double mastectomy and eight courses of chemotherapy, Markson decided life could be far too short to spend it doing anything other than what she loved. Singing.



Fast forward a few years, and now, with a talented team of musicians and producers behind her—as well as her forthcoming EP, Livin’ Dreams, on deck—she has released the first single from the EDM meets Pop meets R&B project, the spirited and redemptive, Higher Than Heaven.

Considering the battles Nicole endured to reach this point, it’s no surprise that this cathartic, club-ready jam is like a dance-prayer. Thumping drum and bass, collide with laser synth, and Markson’s powerhouse vocals to create an electrifying, high-energy banger for the purposes of prayer or play…

“Make me strong, God, don’t take me tonight
Make me live long, I’ll put up the fight
Don’t take me away, got so much life to live…”

WHOSE LOVECHILD…?
Celine Dion meets Taylor Dayne…

BELOW: Listen to Nicole Markson’s single, Higher Than Heaven, and connect with her website and social media platforms. Please support Nicole Markson by visiting her online, and playing, downloading, and/or purchasing her music, or attending a live show! And, as always, thank you for supporting real music! - The Ark Of Music

Light piano notes compliment Nicole Markson’s angelic voice wholly throughout her holy (insert pun joke here) new single Higher Than Heaven. The bass hits after a sublimely soft intro, notes showering down in a rainy shimmer. The vocals follow like celestial thunder, as if dropped from nirvana (the noun not the band). The keys get louder while the intensity behind her voice grows, belting the line, ‘Got so much life to live’, as if singing to the angel of Death. The pre-chorus returns to the syrupy piano notes paired with Markson repeating ‘Living dreams’, increasing in sweetness before adding intensity.

The electronic orchestra notes enter, leading straight to the hook, ‘I’m going higher than heaven’, (and I’m falling in love with this song). The chorus comes in hard with pulsing electronic keys stowed between steady and at times poly-rhythmic drum strikes. You feel like you’re actually ‘dancing with the stars’ (never watched the show, but I’ve heard good things) amongst the long glittering strikes, almost like you’re in a rocket ship with Markson taking you past the sky.

The soundscape widens like a sunset, right before closing in on the next verse, returning to the creamy piano as the speaker pleads with God to ‘Hear me tonight’, (we certainly can hear such a radiant voice). The speaker pleads for strength; one can feel her desperation to live, a desperation that translates perfectly into dance. It’s almost as if the speaker straddles the edge of death, while feeling so fiercely the will to live – a concept first illustrated by Arthur Schopenhauer (shout out to my favorite pessimist). Such a will is the drive to self-preservation, the natural feeling in the face of death, a feeling often coupled with the finding of purpose. Such purpose can be found all throughout the musical piece, fusing easy sway and ecstatic dance, grooming any body to move.

Markson has certainly found meaning in art by magnificently blending classical piano and new age electronica to create an eclectic sound for easy listening across all walks of life. Hopefully you too, dear reader, can derive such purpose perhaps by becoming a creator in some shape or sound.

Download the single via iTunes. Find & follow Nicole Markson on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. - Stereo Stickman