Girl at the Rock Shows

It’s a relatively warm Tuesday night up here in the Twin Cities, but I am feeling all of the cozy vibes right now. There’s a rumor that we may get the first snowfall of the year this weekend, and I am so ready for it, but we are not there yet. That being said, the description I got with ‘The Taming Ties Create’ from Twilark is giving me all of the cozy vibes. Words and phrases like “Melancholic southern folk” and “intimate indie” have me thinking that this album may fit my mood perfectly right now, so let’s jump right in!

This ten-song album opens with “A New Ending.” The warm and cozy vibes hit me almost instantly as this song started. The vocals are comforting, and the instrumentation, although definitely indie-pop feeling, has a sense of energy behind it that I so badly needed to help get me in the mood for my show tonight. To say that this opening track is charming would be an understatement. I love the emotion that comes through loud and clear in vocalist Canon Pence’s words. Not only is the word choice superb, but the tone has a very honest feeling to it. Like it’s almost a bit of a conversation rather than a beautiful song.

Although the second song on the album, “A Piece Of You,” is just as energized as the opening track, it’s a different kind of energy. This song feels a bit slower and more somber, but in a loving sort of way. This song reads like one of those most heartbreaking but beautiful love songs of all time, giving it an almost instant classic kind of feeling. Although it definitely felt a bit more low-key than I feel in the mood for right now, there’s no denying the beauty that radiates throughout this nearly four-minute-long track.

I definitely wouldn’t call “Beacon” a super fun track, as it continues on with the tenderness laid out in the first two tracks, but there’s something just slightly more playful about this song that I instantly fell deep into. Maybe this is just where my head is at, but as I let this song take over my house and heart, I pictured myself sitting near my front window, watching snow gently fall while sipping on a cup of piping hot tea. I know, it’s dramatic and quite basic for a girl like me, but there was just something so calming and serene about this track that it definitely felt like it was setting the stage for a beautiful, snowy winter day.

The emotional power of Twilark is something that can be felt throughout this entire album, but I feel like it really hit home in “My True Name.” The opening lines alone, “Afraid letting go, afraid of holding on too long, And if we slip away, where will we fall?” Go ahead and let those lines sink in a little bit. Again, the genius wording behind this entire album is something to be envied. The words read like poetry, but they have an almost conversational tone, like I mentioned in “A New Ending,” meaning that by this point in the album, you feel as if Twilark has seen your soul. Like Twilark knows all of your deepest, darkest secrets, but somehow you’re okay with it.

“Constancy” was another song, like “A Piece Of You,” where I felt it was just a bit too chill and somber for my current mental state, but again, the vulnerability and raw element that come with all of these songs had me sold and lost in this one. At just two and a half minutes long, this is the shortest track on the album, but one that refuses to be ignored and slides so perfectly into “Each Day Will Take A Part Of You,” the sixth song on this album.

Things take a turn when it comes to this sixth track. The instrumentation kicks this song off with a super abrasive sound before you get stronger drums than had been heard previously on this album. Even with this shift into something a bit more rockin’ and a bit more intense, Canon Pence’s voice remains calm and warm, adding this feeling of contrast that I wasn’t quite expecting based on the first few songs, but that I welcomed gladly into my soul. I loved how, although more intense, there’s still the same attention to detail in this song as in all the previous tracks, making it a perfect fit for the album while also feeling like something completely different and fresh.

The movement throughout this album and the way the tracks all fit together is genius. I love how “Something New” seems to take some of the more amplified instrumentation felt in the previous song but brings things back down to Earth with Twilark’s signature dream-like soundscapes. Then, you see another evolution as the album moves into “Shade For Sunshine.” Again, although the vocals remain a constant, the way you transition from the lush dreamscape of “Something New” to a more traditional folk feeling in “Shade for Sunshine” is absolutely genius. The vibes work together, and it’s clear to hear that both of these songs are from Twilark, but at the same time, each seemed to bring a different hue over my house and my heart.

Just when I thought I had heard every side of Twilark that there was to hear, “Your Own Ceremony” hit. This song feels shockingly celebratory compared to the rest of the songs on this album, but as you delve into the beautiful words that are a signature of this group, you realize that this song may not be as happy as you initially think. I mean, don’t get me wrong, the lyrics aren’t super dark and dreary or anything like that, but they remain a lovely cascade of warmth and emotion.

Closing out ‘The Taming Ties Create’ is “To Tame To Learn To Know. It’s as if Twilark knew that, after the celebratory vibe of “Your Own Ceremony,” they needed to bring you back down to Earth before ushering you back into the real world. This song brings back the slow, soft, and tender side of this band, which is done so expertly well. Although I would have loved to see this song end on a high note like “Your Own Ceremony,” I did appreciate how the track almost acted as an outro. That’s not to say that this track can be ignored, but more that the slow and steady beauty of it felt like being on a ship being taken out to sea. You may not know what’s coming for you next, but you know that, at the moment, there’s nothing but beauty, optimism, and comfort.

Tl;dr: ‘The Taming Ties Create’ from Twilark is not an album to help you get amped up and ready for a night out, but it is the perfect soundtrack for a cold and snowy day spent inside with your loved ones and a nice cup of hot tea. The coziness of this album is as insane as the vulnerability and emotion that can be felt with every passing word. Twilark is an act to turn to when you feel like you have nothing left. Their sound will sink into your bones and will have a way of calming even the most restless soul.

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