All Eyes and the surreal emotional impact of "Someone To Rely On" (Official Video)

 

"I know where you’ve been / Out riding in the sun / Leading the swarm / Kicking the habit..."

During these dark times I have been seeing an increase in dark atmospheric music, in sounds that border the almost cliché 'dystopian' descriptor. It may be an arbiter of the mood in this world or at least the mood of some of the musically creative among us. That brings me to "Someone To Rely On" by the magnificent Minnesota divergent duo All Eyes, the artful project of Alicia & Joe Christenson. It is not one of those song even though (for whatever reason) I expected it to be one. Seconds in I felt like I stepped into something surreal and something pervasive as my world seemed to slow down almost uncomfortably. The bass anchor is powerful as are the drones of sound and Joe's ultra dreamy guitar lines but what really draws you in is Alicia's vox. Her vocal aesthetic here, is at once James Bond-ian (nostalgically sultry), pained with hope burning through like the edge of light at a storm cloud's edge while at the same time also feeling like an embrace, not a sexual embrace but a warm embrace. The kind of embrace someone give you while you are hurting deeply.

Alicia's lyrics are vague enough to be something mysterious for you to interpret, very poetic and, floating almost tenuously on her dreamy melody, very impactful:

I’m shipwrecked
Spinning on the shore
It’s a recurring act
Think I’m never going back

Let it slide, do you let it slide?
Still holding out for a killer time
Trying to be someone to rely on
To keep it light, keep it light

My crazy, hectic work schedule has been such that I have come back to this song many times in an effort to do this song justice, to put my words just so like I always try to do and every single time I have come back to "Someone To Rely On", the duo's intimate moving dreamscape has given me chills, literally. Darkly drawn, yes, but beautifully so. The song is accompanied by an Official Video directed and edited by Jake Dilley collaging what appears to be sourced public domain footage with great effect. "Someone To Rely On" will appear on the All Eyes' upcoming "Daystar" EP.

-Robb Donker Curtius

THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

https://www.facebook.com/alleyesmusic

https://www.instagram.com/all.eyes.mpls/
Apple Music
Bandcamp


Minnesota's frigid reputation dissembles its true nature, which is a place of deep contrast. Bitter cold winters give way to lush, humid summers. A warm, over-polite reaction often means keep your distance. Some who stay here learn to embrace dissimilarity. Such is the case for Alicia & Joe Christenson, who make music as All Eyes. Their sound "restlessly push[es] at the margins, shifting and morphing, defying . . . broad categorization" (Jonathan Garrett, City Pages).

The couple are veterans of the Minneapolis music scene -- Alicia as a singer, songwriter, and keyboardist, and Joe as a producer and guitarist -- and they came together just as Alicia dreamt up All Eyes's first release, Shelf Life. The album explores themes of loss, connection, helplessness, and resolve. The sonics contrast live and programmed drums, jarring guitars and Alicia's haunting, whispery vocals.

The couple explore similar themes and sounds on their second release, Change. Synths, programmed drums, and vocal harmonies feature more prominently, but the songs and production continue to toy with boundaries and expectations. Click the button below to listen to Change, and be sure to subscribe to the newsletter to be among the first to hear new music, currently planned for release in early 2021.


indie rock, Shoegaze / Dream Pop, Bedroom / Lo-fi Pop, All Eyes, divergent pop, indie rock, alternative music, experimental, "Someone To Rely On", Alicia & Joe Christenson, "Daystar" EP