Nothing Happens Here

Soft Blue Shimmer

Nothing Happens Here ep

(Disposable America)

I’ve been procrastinating writing this forever.  I think it’s because of my constant self-doubt about why I write about my favorite music.  It all feels so useless, especially since I’m not very eloquent, and as has been said before “writing about music is like dancing about architecture.”  In other words, it’s difficult to explain the sound of a song, especially without relying too much on pigeonholing artists by comparing them to others.  I generally attempt to describe the music’s impact on me personally, in hopes of enticing the one person who might read far enough to think “hey, this seems like something worth listening to!”  Unfortunately, despite being really excited about a lot of the new music I’ve been encountering, it has not translated into words that I feel do these fine artists justice.  But, I can’t seem to help myself.  As I’ve said elsewhere, when I hear great music, I want to shout out my love of it to the world!  I want to play it loud enough for everyone to hear and get the same kind of magic out of it that I do.  Sometimes I think that perhaps I should simply write my record synopses with simple phrases like: “This rocks!” and leave it at that.

Nothing Happens Here is the debut EP from the L.A. band Soft Blue Shimmer and I absolutely love it!!  There you go.  This is where I should stop, but I won’t.  These five songs are so magically tuneful and enticing that I cannot stop listening to them.  Like the chorus from the wonderful “Fruitcake,” my advice is to let each song dreamily work its way into your subconscious – “crushing like a wave.”  Lyrically, the songs all tie together with a theme of missing a partner who has departed and our narrator pining over their memory.  The languid “Dream Beam Supreme” presents the battle to fall asleep when the mind won’t stop ruminating over that certain lost someone, so, vocalist Meredith invites that person to join her in her evasive dreams to dance.  Next up is the upbeat blast of energy that is “Shinji.”  This song really gets me going.  There’s something about Meredith’s calm vocals (I’ve been deliberately repeating “I’ve been feeling more” over and over in my head lately during stressful parts of the day), juxtaposed with the crashing cymbals and twin guitar drive of the music that is stunning.  Back on the unbelievably perfect pop song that is “Fruitcake,” we find Meredith in fear of dwelling on the sadness of losing her former partner and trying to avoid being alone with those thoughts.  A feeling I’m sure a lot of us can relate with – at least I sure can.  In this case though, it all goes down easier with such a spectacularly hummable song.  “Chamoy” also mines this territory beautifully, as the memories linger (like chamoy sauce?) dangerously and with a healthy bit of bitterness (“I thought I would miss that / the feeling of missing / of something I thought I knew / but I’ll never miss that / the feeling of leaving / or the scent of you in my room”).  The dramatic closing song, “Happier Than Mitsuru,” finds us getting a little fed up with these memories, and possibly ready to try to move forward (“try to remember / but I / often forget that / I can’t / keep seeking people from the past”).

These five songs are loaded with sadness, but are so damn enjoyable to listen to!  I cannot decide which song is my favorite, so I have to play the entire thing from start to finish, and then, I have to play them all over again.  This young band has completely caught my attention.  I cannot wait to hear more! 

(https://softblueshimmer.bandcamp.com/releases)

Soft Blue Shimmer "Fruitcake"