Hypnotic, shoegaze guitar riffs, mellow vocals, melancholic instrumentals.
The most intriguing piece of Slowdive’s album Souvlaki for me, is the relatability to such a heart wrenching feeling. Mainstream music lacks the sincerity and genuine feeling that the band Slowdive has, leaving most popular media almost unemotional feeling and bland. Slowdive is the type of music you cry to after a bad argument, or the type that makes you go quiet on a long car ride. The type of music that makes you think about everything you’ve ever been and everything you ever will be. Music like this makes living and feeling so much more real.
I think even though being sad is generally an uncomfortable feeling, it’s good to sit in your feelings and let yourself feel everything once in a while. A lot of the time, people push their feelings down and try not to think about it, but this album almost encourages the feeling, and shows how deep of an impact the right mix of instruments and vocals can strike in a person.
With songs like “Alison,” describing the complicated relationship between the singer and a troubled girl, Alison. “Your cigarette still burns/Your messed up world will thrill me/Alison, I’m lost.” The easy listening, yet striking, almost mournful lyrics layer to create a unique atmosphere, similar to the way real, raw sadness feels.
It’s not to say that mainstream music is ‘boring’, because I think you’d have trouble finding someone who’d dance to a song out of this album, but the raw realness of Souvlaki is unmatched in the industry. It’s not often artists, not only as individuals, but especially as groups, can capture the true essence of sadness or hopelessness, so it’s amazing to get such accurate representation in popular media.
It’s not like listening to the album will ruin your entire day and make you break out into tears, but it totally could if you’re in any type of mood. The most impactful type of music is the type that could make you sob, or make you feel happier than you might have ever been. The type that you can relax to, but also get in your feels about.
Slow and sad music like this makes it easy to romanticize your life too, because sometimes it’s okay to just give into the music and let yourself feel it all. I probably wouldn’t recommend this album if you’re working out or doing anything exciting or intense, because this album definitely has a more melancholic, chilled out type of feeling to it.
