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about
“Can a reflected sun still burn?” “Will the surface break if I dive in?” These aren’t the questions likely to come up for the average beachgoer when lounging by the shore. Luckily for us, there’s nothing average about Gel Set (AKA Laura Callier). Her haunting new single “Where The Ocean Meets The Land” takes inspiration from the sea to consider patterns of self-sabotage and surrender.
A follow-up to August’s pulsating “It Has Come To Our Attention”, “Where The Ocean Meets The Land” is moodier than its precursor, anchored by an ominous synth that offsets Callier’s ghostly vocals. The song’s narrator is locked in a sisyphean battle with the sea, writing a name in the sand repeatedly, only to watch it get erased by the tides. Eventually, she allows herself to be washed away as well, a metaphor for depression and self-defeating cycles.
Despite its heavy subject matter, “Where The Ocean Meets The Land” is definitely buoyant - this is a Gel Set song, after all. Callier’s voice is clear as water, the melody almost hypnotic. The accompanying video (shot entirely socially-distanced in director Sam Congdon’s backyard) pokes fun at the gravity of both the song’s content and our current global situation. She lounges on a green-screened beach, floats in a virtual ocean, and cruises down a digital highway in a toy Jeep. On her tongue-in-cheek escapism, she notes, “there’s never been a better time stay at your house and pretend you’re somewhere else.”
As the song progresses, the languid synth gives way to a bouncy slide guitar contributed by co-producer Noah Anthony (AKA Profligate). It acts as a sort of aural floatation device; the promise of survival after surrender. It’s not a message of hope, per se, nor should it be. On “Where The Ocean Meets The Land,” Gel Set isn’t interested in being rescued, but delivered.
lyrics
Will the surface break if I dive in?
Can a reflected sun still burn? (It can)
When will the waves ever end?
Where the ocean
I wrote a name in the sand
Where the ocean meets the land
I wrote it again and again
Where the ocean meets the land
When will the waves ever end?
Where the ocean meets the land
Seaweed wraps around and then
The undertow slips from my hand
Where the ocean meets the land
When will the waves ever end?
Where the ocean meets the land
I wrote a name in the sand
Where the ocean meets the land
I wrote it again and again
Where the ocean meets the land
When will the waves ever end?
credits
released October 16, 2020
Written by Laura Callier
Produced by Noah Anthony and Laura Callier
Additional Instrumentation by Noah Anthony
Vocal Recording by Hotel Earth
Mastered by Alex Michalski
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