Named after the Grapevine stretch on interstate five in Southern California, Weyes Blood‘s new single ‘Grapevine’ embodies the very essence of a road trip anthem. The song paints an evocative picture of the time spent travelling and the nostalgic reminiscence that this time on the road often propels within us. Standing at five and a half minutes, this track certainly allows the listener to follow Mering on this journey, yearning for love lost alongside her, in a way that feels both intimately connected to Mering’s personal memories and to a more generalised and universal sentimentality towards the past.
Echoing this dual character of the song, Mering said in a press statement released via her record label:
“We all have a ‘Grapevine’ entwined around our past with unresolved wounds and pain. Being in love doesn’t necessarily mean being together. Why else do so many love songs yearn for a connection?”
‘Grapevine’ explores the perennial pain of loss and the never-ending search for light in that darkness — the same sense of endlessness felt on those six-hour stretches of Californian highway.
The song is true melancholic Americana; a track entrenched in distinct references to the American culture, like the eponymous section of Californian highway, the description of “emotional cowboys”, and the death of the actor James Dean. But these cultural references are underpinned by feelings of love and loss echoed by all.
And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow follows Weyes Blood’s critically acclaimed 2019 release Titanic Rising, an emotive baroque pop album that toyed with the idea that we are all on the precipice of catastrophic change. Mering has revealed that this was the first in a trilogy of interrelated albums, with And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow being the sequel. ‘Grapevine’, and the previous single, ‘It’s Not Just Me It’s Everybody’ both sonically and thematically expand upon the world set out in Titanic Rising. As Mering put it:
“[Titanic Rising] was an observation of things to come, the feelings of impending doom. And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow is about entering the next phase, the one in which we all find ourselves today — we are literally in the thick of it. Feeling around in the dark for meaning in a time of instability and irrevocable change.”
And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow is out on November 18 via Sub Pop Records.
Listen to ‘Grapevine’ below.
