Sam Wright’s newest release Mirrors covers a whole new style that he has never done before. With a discography that hosts primarily garage rock songs in the vein of Naked Giants and Meatbodies, the Mirrors EP is strikingly upbeat and uplifting, and can best be described as surf rock. Wright has stated that all of the tracks on this release are inspired by his departure from Los Angeles, and his venture into New York City. This EP was meant to capture the sound of a summer in LA.
The EP’s opener “Where’d You Go?” starts with a melodic guitar hook that can be heard through a majority of the track. The arpeggiated guitars really drive the song home. The song feels as if it is in motion, like a person searching for someone or something. There is a heavy feeling of reminiscence and nostalgia and a melancholy undertone to this song and its lyrics that is hauntingly beautiful. Stylistically, it sounds like it has hints of influence from early Twin Peaks. The song crescendos into a high gain guitar solo that really stands out because it makes the rest of the song seem tame in comparison. This track is a perfect predecessor for the rest of the EP.
“Sand” transports the listener right onto the shores of a sunny California beach. This sounds like one of the happiest songs that Wright has released to date. The vocal approach and musical style sounds like Hot Flash Heat Wave, and other California native groups. The drums begin straightforward but start to become more complex through the duration of the song, building intensity the whole way through. The middle eight features added percussion: congas, which give a Caribbean feel to the already beachy tune. This song could be played on a 100 degree day or a breezy spring afternoon.
“Only Road” sounds like a desert in a Clint Eastwood cinema–it has a feel that is droning but hypnotic. The song builds into a psychedelic guitar solo that sounds like it could have been played at the first Woodstock. Sam Wright described this song as being about feeling isolated in the brand new city that he had moved to–The Big Apple. Wright captured that feeling of solitude in this song.
“Wave Goodbye” is a bittersweet farewell to the city that Sam Wright once called home. An ode to sunny California, this song is about moving on and moving forward. Though there were many memories made on the west coast, there seems to be many more to be made on the east.
Mirrors as a whole is an homage to California as it indulges in the classic sounds that emerged from there. It is embracing of the lifestyle that comes with the territory. Wright wanted to create something to thank the city that had been his source of inspiration for the past few years. With a new environment to take in, Wright’s music may evolve in unimaginable ways.
Listen to Mirrors here:
