When Daryn Brown sat down to record his own version of Dramatis’ Love Needs No Disguise, reinvention was the word he had in mind. To achieve his vision, he enlisted the help of his friend, Daniel Angelus, and together they devised a beautiful arrangement of the 1981 Dramatis hit (which originally featured Gary Numan on vocals).
Angelus performs vocals on their version, and Brown built the foundation of the track – layering the parts and performing the acoustic instruments. The texture of their version is deliberately sparse; Brown states that he likes to “strip a song down to its bare minimum, getting rid of everything that makes the original sound the way it does, and building up a completely new arrangement with contrasting elements.” This approach gives the song a much more organic feel than the Dramatis original, which is characterized by busy drum programming and new-wave synth sounds.
The lyric talks about the truth and transparency that exists between two people who are in love, despite the movements and circumstances of the world around them. Brown and Angelus’ slower, more spacious arrangement gives the words a bit more room to breathe, highlighting the brooding intensity that they possess. Angelus’s vocal performance is absolutely stunning and he injects emotion into every syllable that comes out of his mouth. His falsetto towards the end of the song emphasizes his remarkable talent as a singer; it’s no surprise Brown was so determined to collaborate with him for this track.
Fans of the original will love what Brown and Angelus have done to rework this wonderful tune. Love Needs No Disguise sees the coming together of two incredibly gifted UK artists to offer their unique take on a classic song from years gone by.
—-
BELOW: Listen to Love Needs No Disguise and connect with their website and social media platforms. Please support Daryn Brown & Daniel Angelus by visiting them online, and playing, downloading, and/or purchasing their music, or attending a live show! And, as always, thank you for supporting real music!
(Want to have your music reviewed on The Ark of Music? Click HERE.)