The stunning new single from the dreamy indie-rock duo “attempts to capture the frustrating moments of trying to understand and connect with someone that will only let you get so close”
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“You move around like a fish out of water // And when I try to move close, you dive deeper and further // Until you can breathe”
Life and love are tricky, and at some point in our dating days, many of us have experienced an unfortunate kind of lopsided love. Not totally unrequited, but at least unequally reciprocated, a dynamic defined by an affection that’s addictive in its inconsistency and just enough to keep us coming back for more. It’s not necessarily a produce of maliciousness or manipulation on anyone’s part; it’s just imbalance. Sometimes the other person just can’t, or won’t, give us what we want or need, and as a result the relationship ends up being more rooted in potential than actuality—a rose-colored glasses approach to romance and an infatuation perpetuated mostly by our imagination.
Love makes us dumb, or at least a little blind. And just like the heart can cause us pain, the brain presents problems as well. We’re all familiar with the idea of confirmation bias, defined as “the tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one’s existing beliefs or theories,” and when you’re caught up in a whirlwind of emotions, it’s tempting to take and twist every tidbit to fit a nice little narrative. An uneven relationship defined by mixed messages functions as an emotional Rorschach onto which we project our preferred version of reality. We desperately attempt to find direction in randomly scattered breadcrumbs, trying to forge a path that will lead us to our desired destination. And all the while, we search for scraps to sustain us, analyzing every look, touch and piece of punctuation to find fuel for our faith.
In short, shit is hard. (Hence all my dramatic metaphors!) And it’s this feeling, an all-encompassing adoration mixed with frustration and desperation, that’s explored by Project Diem in sonically stunning and emotionally heavy-hitting fashion (very typical of the dreamy indie duo).
A day ahead of the official release, I couldn’t be more thrilled to premiere the brand-new song here. This is “Days.”
“You send signs in waves // made me think you really care // Not sure if you mean to // No, i know you do”
The lyrics for “Days” are laced with aquatic references, and this theme is reflected in the sound of the song itself, which has an almost underwater feel to it, an atmospheric echoing and a swelling of emotion anchored by often danceable drums. It also serves as an apt metaphor for anyone who has really fallen for someone, a sensation that often feels like being carried away by a current and an experience in which one can easily accidentally—or, in some cases, 100-percent willingly—drown.
Ahead of the release, Project Diem‘s talented songwriters Meghan Seeberg and Dominic Dellaquila sent over some words on the song and the feelings that it seeks to express:
“’Days’ attempts to capture the frustrating moments of trying to understand and connect with someone that will only let you get so close. Even if they want to, situations and past traumas won’t allow it, so we look for symbols and signs to console us in our venture to find understanding. Searching within those fleeting moments of togetherness, you can find hope; a sense that maybe you are on the right track and the feeling is mutual. Sometimes you are just fooling yourself. For some of us, finding hope is as easy as grasping onto the softest snowflake, and for others, it takes getting run over by a truck to feel it.”
Project Diem has recently evolved into a five-piece with the addition of Luke Gefell on drums, Aaron Sankin on bass, and Leah Kolchinsky on keys and backing vocals, and their live show packs a punch on both the sound and feeling fronts. It’s music that surrounds you and sweeps you up, a beautiful and intensely immersive experience that you can (and should!) catch on February 23rd at Rubulad, when the band hits the stage as 1/4 of a bill that I’m absolutely obsessed with, featuring BK dream rockers Ok Cowgirl, Philly-based trio Lizdelise and NYC artist Lily Jeanette.
RSVP at rubulad@outlook.com for address, and let’s all show up and talk about our feelings. Clearly a lot of us (at least me!) have got a lot of them. <3
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Follow Project DIem at @projectdiem, buy music on Bandcamp and add their songs to your Spotify playlists!
Feature image (provided by the band): David Sanchirico