Alongside artists like Track IX, Imogen Heap, Julia Easterlin, Grace McLean, and Kimbra, singer-songwriter Nina Pelligra wants to secure her place on the list of supremely talented professional live-loop performers. Pelligra's latest recording, Sense of Self, sets her on that path. If you aren't already familiar with her work, this is a great introduction to Pelligra's sound and style.  

Stating the obvious, Sense of Self is about discovering and dealing with the weight that anchors our souls in negative space. Pelligra tries to convince the listener that it is time to let this go and discover who you are.  

The track starts out slow and simple. Pelligra has a bit of a wispy soprano at times that really opens up in the upper register. It’s never full-throated but this version of the song doesn’t call for over the top power. In fact, this restraint seems to personify the tethering we do to ourselves. She doesn’t soar until she lets her voice do so.    

I would like to hear a little more textural complexity under the verses, much like what happens in the bridge and the outro where the multilayering adds sonic interest. It took me a while to warm up to the lyrics, but once I did, the song became utterly captivating by being deceptively subversive. Listening to some of her other works on SoundCloud, Pelligra is definitely growing as an artist, and I look forward to what a full-length album will deliver.