Somebody once asked me, “Why do you like music so much?” To which I replied, “It’s the closest thing to real-life magic.”
I’ve always held the belief that songs are like portals (yes, like the ones in your favorite fantasy novels or Sci-Fi movies). To me, a successful song is one that opens a portal and transports you somewhere else, if only temporarily. With my headphones on and the volume turned up, the moment I pressed play on “Garden” by Mini Trees, I felt that portal open up – and I stepped into it.
First greeted by its airy psychedelic chords, the song quickly whisked me away with a calming, repetitive rhythm. A lead guitar melody then leads us directly into the ethereal vocals of Lexi Vega. She recounts a relationship she held onto, despite it crumbling around her, “Jaded now that we’re sober / I was holding out for something I could keep.” Vega likens getting past the initial “honeymoon phase” of a relationship to sobering up and realizing that you were only caught up in your emotions.
We all know what she is singing about here. More often than not, our emotions will take control of our rational thought and lead us to sacrifice our own well-being for others who wouldn’t do the same in return. As the chorus begins, we’re frozen in time. The only thing audible is Vega’s voice, surrounded by ghostly harmonies which fade in and out. She knows she would do just about anything, including sacrificing herself, for this other person, “Pull me in two / Abandon the garden to get through to you / I’m finding out you’re someone I can’t afford to lose.” Once our emotions are this deep, it’s so easy to convince ourselves that we need this person. This pause in time may reflect a sort of introspection on Vega’s part.
Time resumes as the chorus ends, and we’re back on our journey. At this point in the song, it is clear that Vega is not using her platform to call for help but is using it to solidify her message. She knows exactly what she is doing, as well as what she is and isn’t capable of, “Shameless in my nature / Wanted to be everything you’d ever need / But the truth is I cannot keep my promises.” She is perfectly fine giving everything up for this one person, which might suggest she is still deep in her emotions, despite being aware of the consequences. Perhaps she is writing this song to comfort herself over her own flaws, or possibly she is just trying to express her deep love with no deeper message. Despite this, we can undoubtedly observe her devotion to whomever she sings to, “If I could be your cure / It’s all that I would choose.”
By the time this song ends, you can’t help but hit replay. The dreamy quality of it mixed with the painfully relatable lyrics combine to create a song which hits hard every time you listen. No matter how far into the past or future you go, the tale of a lover stuck in an unrequited love story is one that will always resonate with people. As there have been thousands of songs about it before, there will surely be thousands of songs about it after. However, “Garden” by Mini Trees offers a unique take on the topic which will be sure to help it stand out from the crowd.
