By Arne Sjostedt
Into their third decade together, Human Nature remain a force to be reckoned with. After moving to Las Vegas 11 years ago, 2020 sees them excited to be bringing new music to the world.
Over their career, the group have been riding a wave of success on the back of hits like Tellin' Everybody. Then there was their Motown albums that saw them at the top of the ARIA charts so often it felt like the good times would never end.
One fourth of the group Phil Burton says these songs return the quartette to their pop roots, and give their sound a facelift to match their international status.
“For the last 15 or 16 years we have been doing cover songs, which come with their own baggage I guess, good or bad. The people have already prejudged the actual songs,” Burton says.
The first track from their swag of new gifts is Nobody Just Like You.
Produced by Grey, who were part of the team responsible for stellar Billboard Pop Songs number one The Middle, Burton says that the pairing didn’t happen without the universe stepping in to guide them.
"It was almost like a fate thing," Burton says, with song writing team Andrew and Mike Tierney meeting the duo’s mother at their church congregation, and chasing down the brothers for a few months.
“We haven’t worked with people who are right up there in terms of current production, who are right at the forefront of it, for a long long time."
"So it was a really amazing experience to get to do that again, particularly at this stage of our careers. I think they are the best songs that Andrew and Mike have ever written. And coupling them up with fresh producers is just creating some really awesome music,” says Burton.
The band have only performed Nobody Like You a couple of times but have been looking at how they can make sure their stage show is as exciting for their new fans as much as their old.
“We performed it once at the final of the Australian Open. Odd in its own way because we were standing on a tennis court. Not normally the situation you find yourself in to perform music, so that kind of felt a little bit surreal,” says Burton.
“We did perform it live in Perth at a one off Valentine's Day concert. It was on a golf course. Maybe we should start performing on more sporting fields these days.”
More used to playing five nights a week at The Venetian, Burton says life in the gambling capital of the universe has more facets than visitors may think.
“Vegas is seen as this crazy party town. And if you want it to be that, that is exactly what it can be for you,” Burton says.
“The one thing with Vegas is that the centre of the town is just completely nuts, but everywhere outside of that is pretty normal. And funnily enough, often the two don’t even meet. We’ve been here 11 years and we still speak to people who have lived here all their lives and they say, ‘Oh what do you do?’ and we say we’re Human Nature, and they go, ’What’s that?’ They have no idea. Even though we’ve go 40 or 50 billboards around town with our faces and name on it, they just don’t notice."
Regardless of where they find themselves, like the majority of career artists, keeping their audiences engaged and entertained is a reward for them as much as it is for people who show up at their gigs.
“One of the things that you find that gives performers so much energy is that interaction with the crowds. And i think interacting and getting that personal and very immediate feedback from people is the sort of thing that keeps you driving forward in what you are doing, because no two audiences are the same, even here in Vegas.”