I haven’t gone camping in a while.
But when I was a little kid, my family had a pop-up camper, and we’d often spend weekends out at some state park, roasting s’mores around a campfire, telling ghost stories, and, of course, looking up at the stars. It’s been a while, but I’ve always found being out under the sky at night both frightening and freeing.
When the stars come out, you’re reminded of how big the universe is and how small you are. And yet watching them burn across the vastness of space always gives me a sense of place, too – some strange feeling that I belong here.
I’m not sure if that feeling is what Springtide is aiming for in the aptly-titled “Fall Asleep Under Millions of Stars” – but I do know that the track punched me in the gut with it.
The song starts with fast-paced down-strumming on a submerged acoustic guitar, with Hart (the brains behind the one-man, Tokyo-based project) delivering what sound like classic pop-punk vocals:
I could fall asleep under millions of stars in the sky
Don’t know how to keep still
Because I understand this is ending
That final word (“ending”) takes on an extra punch because it’s buoyed by shouted group vocals – and from there, the sonic palette emerges and the track is really off and running. A diverse mix of sonic textures immediately rushes in, highlighted by unique sounds from a Fender Telecaster that’s been customized to mimic a sitar and a fretless bass (crafted by Japanese luthier T.S Factory) designed to create pitch-bends that are reminiscent of animal noises.
In short: There’s a lot going on, and it’s awesome.
Hart calls his project “post-rock,” which I suppose is accurate. But what I like about it is that, while it’s undoubtedly divergent from classic rock, the outcome still feels familiar.
For example: “Not a few people mention they heard synthesizer sounds (in my music),” Hart explains in the press materials for the track. The trick is that those sounds are made by guitars, not synths. But the way they hit your ear is so recognizably-synth-like that you can be forgiven for making the mistake.
I think that blend between familiarity and uncertainty is the defining trait of the song – and it’s a heady rush.
I didn’t know what would happen in my life
Hart sings in the verse, and across the world from Tokyo, I find myself feeling the same way. There’s freedom in realizing you’ve never known what’s next. And maybe, paradoxically, a sense of place, too, in the recognition that new things are built on top of the old ones.
It makes me want to start over. Or maybe just go camping.
Stream “Fall Asleep Under Millions of Stars” on your platform of choice here. And if you’re interested in learning more about Springtide, visit the project’s website here.
