Author: Eason

DISCLAIMER: many of my hyperlinks are meant to provide more information about their subject but sometimes my brain shoots off to another corner of the internet so just know that if it makes no sense it’s probably the latter.

If you google “define therapy” you’ll notice that psychotherapy, or talk therapy, pops up as a synonym. If you then google “define psychotherapy” and scroll through the results, it doesn’t take too long to confirm that most popular sites use the two words interchangeably. Now obviously, there are different types of therapy but it seems that many derive from psychotherapy or use a psychoanalytical approach (psych people please enlighten me in the comments if I’m off). And this all makes sense. We’re familiar with the “and how does that make you feel” question, and may have had our own experiences with it; but for me and maybe for some of you too, this was my only perspective into “therapy”…until I watched a TED talk on music therapy, and a TED talk on music therapy, and a TED talk on music therapy (no lie, there are tons of these).  “Oook, but you can’t talk about your problems by playing or listening to music”…true…in that you can’t talk *whispers* you can sing yung padawan. But there’s so much more to it and I’d argue you’re more familiar with it than you think. I mean, do you have a sad playlist? I do. I think we all should have one, they’re great. You can recognize moods that songs bring to their listeners based off of how they feel, and if you open yourself up, you can empathize with those emotions, as I’m sure you’ve all done before. I just think many of us don’t actively attend to the fact that we use music on a consistent basis as a tool to work through or understand our mental and emotional states; past, present or future. See, music can unlock precise memories of our past (mhmm you can blabber on all you want about how that one song doesn’t remind you of your ex anymore…); music can entrench us in the moments, movements and/or emotions of the present (even the least graceful of us can tap our feet and bob our heads…); and music can guide our thoughts, inspirations and goals in a way that almost no other thing in this universe can. “Alright. But can music really heal? Can music really be used to treat a mental or physical disorder?” You tell me.

 

 

To be dramatic, I’m currently working through a long period of change and at times like these, I occasionally need somewhere to escape mentally. For me, that’s music, whether I’m listening, writing or producing. But you know how at some points in your life, all the sad lyrics resonate a little too much? So here I was trying to escape part of my escape and not having too much success… until I came across the stress-slashing, life-loving grooves of an unassuming, Texas-based trio, floating around the internet like a runaway beach ball gliding harmlessly over a sea of mines. Surfaces.

A fan’s short album review, a couple of Reddit posts and a self-hosted blog. That’s all I could find on them aside from social media and their own content. I was introduced to Surfaces when Spotify so lovingly released their Tastebreakers playlists in December, and it seems like everyone I talk to has stumbled upon them in one way or another. It turns out one of my cousin’s classmates has produced a few songs for them, one of my best friends’ brothers has collaborated with them and a group of college friends back east have been listening to them almost unknowingly for months. Despite these differing modes of exposure to their music (as well as geographical spreadoutedness #LGR), we have all converged in one state…of obsession.

While many of their songs would pair well with a Corona and lime, their discography mainly flows through lofi hip-hop, dips into jazz and splashes in alternative pop, multi-cultural folk, barbershop and a myriad of other subgenres as its waves make their way into our ear canals.

 

 

• The group consists of three members (with my assumption of their general roles given what I hear/what’s written):
  • Colin Padalecki (Writing, Production, Blogging, Visual Art)
  • Forrest Frank (Vocals, Writing, Production)
    • Also, a self-proclaimed bedroom producer and solo artist himself.
  • Alexa Padalecki (Vocals and though not stated anywhere I can find, probably wrote and contributed to production as well)
• Active since 2016 beginning as, what I assume is, a brother-sister duo (though Forrest and Colin produced music together prior to Surfaces – in college I’m assuming)
• No record of hitting the charts…yet
• They don’t have a freakin’ Wikipedia page either, maybe I’ll submit this haha

…and now that you all have been acquainted, let’s vibrate our ears together.

 

12/3/17 – Album 1 – Surf

 

You know how sometimes you need to give a song a few listens or you need to hear it in just the right mood/mindset before something clicks and you truly like it. Yeah, this was not the case when I was first exposed to Surfaces’ music. “Loving” clicked immediately for me and it may for you too. Either way, this is the album-defining song for Surf so if you like this one, there’s a good chance you’ll like the rest.

 

 

Such an easy song to listen to isn’t it? I love when artists can paint simple and sweet pictures with their songs as a whole despite enormous amounts of complexity layered throughout their mixes. In “Loving”, you have “flyin’ high like the birds and the bees” sung alongside bird chirps and a sustained buzzy bass; there’s this beautiful sample of what I imagine as Snow White’s light, breezy voice serenading these animals as they beep, bop and boop around; and it drives me crazy but there’s this ukulele loop that’s almost impossible to follow/hear and I don’t know how it fits but it just does. Ah, music is a beautiful thing, it’s a beautiful thing:’)

I should also note early on that Surfaces and their members don’t create this music completely on their own. The following credits display artists that have contributed to a respective song’s creation, from writing one word to mixing/mastering the entire production.

 

 

So I read through their blog, went through their twitter account and analyzed each songs’ lyrics (keep in mind these guys wrote every song) to get a feel for where this music came from and man, I’m not gonna lie, I related pretty dang hard…but not in the way I was expecting. For those who know me, I’m a ridiculously sentimental being, nostalgic to no end, and that’s reached a peak here in my early days of “adulthood”. I also tend to romanticize/idealize many things in my life and this “adulthood” is very kindly stripping away many of these ideas, for better or for worse, idk yet (and I am learning I may never find out!) Anywaysss, my point is, reading through their blog posts, tweets and lyrics, I could sense that these were genuine people with romantic natures, a taste for drama and a talent for transforming their seemingly negative thoughts and emotions into uplifting messages. “Whoa, when did this get so deep, I thought we were talking about Surfaces’ music?” And I’d say we still are, but I think it’s important to place emphasis on “the real”, where meaningful art truly comes from. In this case (and in my opinion), “the real” are these deep, youthfully romantic feelings of love and loss, confusion and anxiety about what exactly it is we’re doing with our lives and sadness over the realization that we’ll never get our childhoods back (for those of us lucky enough to have good childhoods). I feel you guys. Welcoming myself to the Q.L.C. club. 

Take a listen through the rest of Surf, but if you’re in a hurry, I’d say go for “Be Alright” and “Kid Kingdoms”. 

 

 

Before I move on, I’d like to point out “Kid Kingdoms” and it’s nostalgia. I think they do a good job capturing the lullaby vibe with bells, xylophones and shakers that remind me of elementary school music class. The kids laughter in the background also connects well with the atmosphere.

“to all the waves that come and go. to all that is washed away. to all that is washed up and found. to acknowledging the bigger picture. to looking up from these screens. to all the sand castles we created. to all of our kid kingdoms. to all of the footprints we left on the shore. may we never stop running. may we never grow up. may we never stop pretending… surf. an album by surfaces. this fall.” – Colin

During the creation of this album, I could feel a change occurring in Colin as he posted updates on Surfaces’ blog. They released Surf and all seemed to have been on the up-and-up…but then Forrest and Colin put out a single called “Low”…not included on either album, just sitting there in between both. This had me confused for awhile, because it didn’t seem to match up with the momentum riding off of Surf…and then I read this:

“what started as just a song about feeling down, turned out to be a song about acceptance and perseverance. a song that lets people know that it’s okay to feel low, it’s okay to yell it out. accepting your lows is always the first step, but what you do from there is what will always define you.” – Colin

Here we are again, using these deep feelings and turning them around into some sort of positive message. Not an outrageous or even unique thing to do really, but what excites me here is that it’s becoming a theme. You’ve heard about the act of “finding one’s sound” or “thing” or whatever, either from artists themselves talking about how endless and arduous of a path it was to find it or from what you hear on the media e.g. judges commenting on performances saying “you haven’t found your sound yet” or “I just wasn’t feeling it”. Ja feel? Well, ladies and gentledudes, I believe this was a moment that clicked for Surfaces and I couldn’t be happier it did.

 

1/6/19 – Album 2 – Where the Light Is

 

This next album starts with the same ambience that the last one ended with. Smooth, jazzy instruments with carefree kids laughing in the background. Then all of a sudden you realize they’re building up to something…ooh that guitar is crisp…dang these textures are so warm…it feels like you’re strutting down a boardwalk in celebration. In celebration of what though? Then it hits. Omg. They found it. They found their sound. Ah, I bet it was a “Beautiful Day” indeed.

 

 

Credits for Where the Light Is:

 

 

Honestly, I could go down a rabbit-hole breaking down these songs so I’ll stay surface level (and leave the active listening to you). Just know “Heaven Falls / Fall on Me”, “This View” and “Grace” as a triad have the ability to break you out of any funk you may be in. Also, it’s fun to note during the creation of this album, the guys were flying between Houston and Seattle (or Clearwater?) and actually went on a trip to Hawaii to write and record together (no doubt inspiring a lot of the story, character and radiance in this album). One of my favorites. Enjoy:)

 

 

What started as these “Seattle Sessions” contemplating their art, feeling a movement towards “songs with less pain”; morphed into the creation of Surf, a collection of music that neatly wrapped their sound up into a cocoon meant to hang proudly on display…but also, to prepare for the release of something even more beautiful: finding themselves, finding their light and encouraging others to find theirs in Where the Light Is. They’ve proven to me that seemingly surface-level messages of encouragement and positivity have much deeper roots in their art…in fact, they have no meaning without them…much like a beach ball, whose physical matter is simply a sphere that can’t take shape without what you breathe inside of it:)

I’m happy for this group. If they ever were to read this, I’d just like to let them know that they’re onto something big, to always stay real with their art and thanks for the perspective. Their music has helped me to continually work through a new phase of my life and I hope that it may inspire you in some aspect of your life. Please send some love their way by checking out their website, their merch (cuz and I copped that long-sleeve tee) and keep up with their music on whatever platform you use. Recently, they’ve released a new summer-single called “Palm Trees” that you may get to see played live if they follow through on their plans to tour this Summer ’19!! If they do, I might just see you there.

Thanks for looking at my words!

✌️‘n Carrots,

eace

Special thanks to Erin Seibert, Robert Gupta and Kathleen Howland and their TED Talks for spreading awareness surrounding the profession of Music Therapy and it’s applications.

This blog post is the first of many “Listening Guides” meant to supply you with a perspective on music I’ve been developing in recent years while sharing the work of artists I find interesting. This perspective is fluid and subject to your own interpretation but remains grounded in the fact that music is art. Especially in today’s digitally-dominated world, I feel that art has been commodified to such a level that we forget this simple fact and don’t think to dig deeper into what we’re listening to…”What do the lyrics mean?” “What’s communicated through the instruments?” “How’d they create that sound?” Music isn’t just this sonic fashion accessory we use to show off for others’ attention or some tool we use to better handle our emotions…but at it’s core, music is a creative expression of someone’s life whether that be their vulnerabilities, their opinions or their desires. Originally, these guides were supposed to be short and sweet, but I had too much fun and am way too much of a perfectionist (except when it comes to grammar and punctuation – you get what I hear in my brain ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) so it turned into more of an interactive case study…whoops. So yes, it’s long and requires effort (omg🙄) but I promise you, if you don’t listen to music this way already, doing so with an approach like this will provide you with a portal into a completely different world. Whether you enjoy it or not is up to you.

Special shout out to these influences for helping me to develop this perspective – all podcasts you should definitely listen to and I will definitely talk about more in the indefinite future:

Song Exploder

Switched On Pop

Twenty Thousand Hertz

Enjoy :)))

 

 

Don’t you miss trick-or-treating? Not so much the candy part (lying to myself), but the part where you wreak havoc on front yards sprinting from house to house with your friends? I’ve been feeling sentimental about my childhood lately and was triggered when one day, Akon’s “Lonely” played randomly at a coffee shop I like to work at. I was reminded of a specific year, where I made the mistake of wearing an oversized, straw sombrero as part of my Halloween costume and forgot to account for the drag it would cause as I ran…long story short, I got left in the dust and was forced to accept defeat as I walked the rest of the neighborhood myself humming the chorus of said song😂. Anyways, the night I got home from the coffee shop, I was inspired to listen to some Akon. Soon after, I cried myself to fell asleep with the music still playing and had the craziest dream…I went trick-or-treating with Akon…and he knew all of the spots to hit up. We got to see Jack Johnson lounging in a hammock on his sand-dusted porch with a bowl of bananarama; Eminem; and of course, Michael Jackson with a mouthful of Hee-Heath😉 Yeah alright, I know I lost half of my readers on that last one so I’ll get to the point. There was one house in the neighborhood Akon and I went to that we seriously considered passing because they went all. out. with their decorations. They were new, unfamiliar and pretty freakin’ weird by most standards. But after realizing neither of us were lonely anymore, Akon and I decided to give them a chance and were rewarded with what seemed like an endless supply of sweets. This earie, candy-mine of a house belonged to Superorganism.

Speaking of Halloween candy, let’s take a moment to reminisce…

 

 

Also, I don’t think this next one received enough recognition during it’s short life and deserves to be resurrected. 

 

Come on. “Swooping the Nation.” Gold.

 

Image Source: Rick and Morty

 

A little background about this sample-slinging ensemble…

• Based in London, England.
• Active since 2017.
• Each member has a stage name within the context of the band (with a very general description of their role in the band):
  • OJ – Orono Noguchi (lead vocals)
  • Emily – Mark David Turner (keyboard/synth)
  • Tucan – Tim Shann (drums)
  • Robert Strange – Blair Everson – (visuals)
  • Harry – Christopher Young (guitar)
  • B – unknown…ooo (backing vocals/odd instruments)
  • Ruby – unknown too…ooo (backing vocals/odd instruments)
  • Soul – Earl Ho (backing vocals/odd instruments)
• Formed after Orono, a Tokyo native attending school in Maine, got interested in a band called The Everson’s and watched one of their gigs in her home city. They bonded over music and memes and the rest is history. More on their story here.
• Their album Superorganism peaked at #4 on the Top Heatseekers (up-and-coming) chart.
• Their song “Everybody Wants to be Famous” peaked at #29 on the Billboard’s Top Alternative Songs chart.
• 7/8 members live together in a house. And yes, they have the same problems all housemates do.

 

IMPORTANT: If you have never watched Superorganism perform, please listen to the song “Nobody Cares” (linked below) before you read the rest of this post!

 

 

Then watch (or skim through), the video below:

 

 

Certainly not what I expected the first time I watched them but they grow an ya fast! More words below.

 

Sneezesplosions

 

“Nobody Cares” is the first song I’m talking about mostly because it’s my favorite/I favor it (ever noticed that?) sonically over their other work and have too many things I want to say about it’s production and my brain feels like one of those huge buckets that fill-up and tip over at water parks trying to explain them all. So I’ll just pick a few.

I have to begin by pointing out the drop. I know, I know. “OmG the DRop is siCk yo.” But seriously…it is…yo. Every time I listen to it, I picture a Godzilla-sized baby cocking back its neck, making a gnarly sneeze face and literally start erupting from its nostrils; both ridiculous and beautiful (btw if someone could capture this image well on a t-shirt, I’d buy it. budget: $20 + unlimited hugs*). Also, it’s not a very noticeable aspect, but you could cut the piece in half and you’d end up with two nearly identical versions of the same song. I’m still learning about song structure and such but it’s not one you come across frequently these days. Ugh, I’m always a sucker for build-ups without drops too. They do this intentionally multiple times leaving you with that Wile E. Coyote moment but never give you the satisfaction of the release. It’s not a ground-breaking technique but I think it’s placed just right in this song. Btw the sound they use in place of the drop is exactly what I’d imagine draining the energy out of a song sounds like (ooh and creating sounds like this is a whole other world itself – look into basic sound design if you’re interested). Ah man, I could go on and on about the samples, lyrics and other musical decisions in this song but I will leave those to myself (for now) and let you all break it down for yourselves! Leave a comment if you’d like to discuss!

*must be in close proximity in order to request

 

Soda Samples

 

Check out their performance at Bob Boilen’s Tiny Desk Concert series. The set list is “The Praun Song”, “Night Time” and “Something for your M.I.N.D.”.

 

 

Imagine brainstorming with this crew… “yeah, so definitely inflatable whales, a coupla sodas and wait, Soul, you got the cup and straw?” lol. I have to highlight “Something for your M.I.N.D.” in this performance too. Though their music may not be best suited for acoustic performances, their creativity and execution is impressive; as displayed during the chorus. Just listen without watching and you’ll see what I mean (hear the birds?).

 

🌝 Eason Association Alert – Intro Synths

 

“The Praun Song” by Superorganism

 

 

vs. “American in Amsterdam” by Wheatus

 

 

Tell me you’re not humming “wow, wow, wow…” in your head rn haha

 

🌝 Eason Association Alert…Again

 

The only reason I know “Amsterdam” is because I played Flash Flash Revolution as a kid (and may or may not still play to this day…). See, I could say that this was is a waste of time and that I could’ve learned a real instrument in the time I spent playing this game, but sometimes you have to invest in odd and obscure hidden talents. Anyways, give the game a shot. It’s DDR for your fingers lol. Link: Flash Flash Revolution

Next up, the full performance from the “Nobody Cares” video from earlier. The setlist is “Something for your M.I.N.D.”, “Everybody Wants to be Famous”, “Nobody Cares” and “Reflections on the Screen”. This is a full band performance which means you can compare this version of “Something for your M.I.N.D.” with the acoustic one you listened to previously.

 

 

Honestly, I have to give props to Emily on the keyboard. Not only is he playing the synth but he’s essentially acting as an onstage producer/mixer. You see him playing with master filters, pitch knobs and volume throughout the performance and as an amateur producer myself, I find it both impressive and impossible.

 

Extra Credit

 

Congratulations^2 (MGMT & Post Malone mashup):

 

 

Ok, gotta show y’all the original version of this next song first. It’s live but electronic so it doesn’t sound much different than the original (plus you get to see some cool Parisians). Song starts 1 min in after an entrance grande by ze vocaliste.

 

 

Might have to write a post on these guys. Next, is the Superorganism remix. Take note of the revised arrangement, atmosphere and drop.

 

 

More soda samples (and turning on a gas burner, biting into an apple, stirring ice in a cup, the classic 8-bit jump sample, and so much more) jump a synthier drop and glitchier overall. Exactly what I’d expect after being fed to the Superorganism.

 

Super Amoeba

 

If you’ve made it this far and invested the time to get to know the amoeba-like sound of Superorganism…(Eason’s brain: “amoeba. simple organism. superorganism? super amoeba. lol super amoeba” )

 

 

Wow, I won’t lie, I just spent 20 minutes creating Super Amoeba. But you know what I mean? Their sound just flows and gloops and propels itself by shoving its “blood” in the direction it’s going. Nope, brain is still on amoebas. Let’s go with it. I think the fact that a group of fairly disjoint musicians floating around in this cytoplasm of life coming together organically to create an expression of life that has never existed before is…completely normal and happens all the time, yet it remains so fascinating to me. (Most) everything in life is evolving…and the sound of music will always reflect that, Superorganism after Superorganism.

I really hope you enjoyed this musical adventure and gained a new perspective on music worth exploring for you. Please show Superorganism some love on their website: https://www.wearesuperorganism.com/ no. Seriously, go to their website. It’s as close to a time portal to the 90’s as you’ll ever get. Play the game. Sign the guestbook. Buy the merch. Or simply show your friends. Any ounce of support helps these artists.

Thanks for looking at my words!

✌️‘n Carrots,

eace