Boston by Car with Indie
Sunset and skyline, Boston
Ah, Boston. My beloved adopted city hooked me with its glowing skyline, cool oceanfront, venerable landmarks, and youthful, college vibe. It was kind of a Goldilocks thing: I’ve lived in a larger city and a few smaller ones but Boston was just right. Of course, Boston is not without issues. Recently, it ranked highest in traffic congestion in the U.S., so my Goldilocks city is also a gridlock city. There are several ways to tackle this issue: 1) The most obvious option is to not drive and take a ride share or public transportation, the latter being my first choice (check out my Green Line D project on Instagram); 2) You can drive and lose your shit when someone inevitably cuts you off and spew endless streams of creative profanity that shock even your own ears; or 3) If option #1 isn’t available and you do end up driving, you can ditch the profanity and stream a local radio station for some new indie music instead.
“Recently, [Boston] ranked highest in traffic congestion in the U.S., so my Goldilocks city is also a gridlock city.”
This was the situation—me in my car in the chaos resisting the urge to @%$&# lose it—when I discovered this month’s Plum Indie selection. The song’s relaxed melody caught my attention right away but I didn’t catch the name of the song. I thought for sure my discovery would stay hidden, forever lost in the radio waves, but kudos to WZBC 90.3, Boston College’s student run radio station, for posting their playlists online! I found the song: “I Fell Asleep to Twin Peaks, Pt. 1” (yes, there is a part two), by Oldsoul from their album, Coy, which was released February 2018 via Counter Intuitive Records. Oldsoul is a local band from Lowell, MA, made up of Jess Hall, Chance Wells, Tom Stevens, and Chris Henault.
“I Fell Asleep to Twin Peaks, Pt. 1” is a minimally produced song with an energy that transcends the box of the studio space, giving it that dreamy quality. The melody glides smoothly over the layered guitars, and Jess Hall’s distinctive vocal gives the song that stay-with-you quality—I found myself singing, “Dream whatever, you're never gonna leave me, are you?” from the chorus for days. I really dig the Twin Peaks reference as well, though I can’t say I’ve watched Twin Peaks or even fallen asleep to it. I have been known, however, to watch the X-Files, which occupies a similar, geeky realm. In fact, I have the X-Files theme song as the ringtone on my phone, and every time someone calls, I jump a little bit because that first note always startles me. It’s like the phone is trying to tell me “The Truth is Out There.”
“I Fell Asleep to Twin Peaks, Pt. 1” is available on iTunes, the Plum Indie playlist on Spotify, and Bandcamp. Oldsoul is currently touring; give them a listen.