As soon as I saw Castlebeat’s name on the list of new songs we’d be reviewing, I ran to tell everyone. I told my girl and my friends so quickly I nearly forgot to get dibs on writing it, and from the moment I saw the cover art, I was so thankful I realized in time.
Echoed vocals dominate the track and recreate that indie sound we all had on our phones during high school. While the genre always pushed for the feeling of missing something, we now miss the moments we reveled in that nostalgia. “Who knew the hard times were the good old days” rings especially true, now that many of the greats from the past decade have earned their name, mostly by growing alongside us.
I think most people at some point listened to something out of the lo-fi indie wave of the 2010s: single note lead guitars, roomy ”dead“ drums, and melancholic vocal lines were ever present, and every local scene had a band like those: I’m willing to bet Castlebeat was on more than one’s inspiration playlist. Their new single “stay with me” marks a beautiful ode to their first decade as a band, indulging in all the lush, lo-fi sounds that scenes across the world all craved at some point. The band even dusted off their VHS-style font for the cover art.
I’d only make a personal note that the new release reads a bit darker. I know Castlebeat may not really be anyone’s first pick as a necessarily “happy” band (after all, this new release is just as drowsy-sad as the rest of their setlist), but the feeling feels more focused, almost more mature and introspective. I’m willing to bet the return to form for the cover art isn’t coincidental at all. If you pick up earlier in their discography, namely their self-titled debut album, you’ll see their first cover is Flowers Amok. No necessary sense or order, just very natural. The cover art on the newer release, however, sees similar flowers in a vase, some as alive as they were back then, some a little more dead. I guess it could be read as a metaphor for youth, or some other fleeting concept, but I feel it’s a wonderful visual analogy of where the band is, even without delving into the lyric’s plea of staying.
If the rest of the band’s discography autoplays after listening to this, let it. It fits right at home and might bump you up into remembering younger years.
Written by Charlotte Lacambra
