“Was I all alone? I couldn’t see a thing. I could be anywhere. I could be anywhere.”
Here’s the perfect tune to put you in the mood—no, not that mood. I’m talking about that introspective, spacey kind of mood. You know, where you’re feeling like you want to cruise slowly through the night in your car, passing by those neon-lit storefronts, pretending you’re Ryan Gosling in Drive? We all know that mood, and if you’re looking for that one song to complete your “late-night driving” playlist, this is it.
Justice McLellan and Alex Cooper are the duo behind Mesa Luna, hailing from Vancouver, Canada. “Don’t Let Go” is simple and hypnotic. It’s all tone, all vibe, and no frills. The vocals are delivered in whispers, as if the lyrics were the meandering thoughts of a lost, lonely man leaving an even lonelier voicemail. What makes the track all the more eerie is how easily it could slip into The Cure’s spectacular album Disintegration (I’m convinced “Don’t Let Go” is the less creepy, equally layered nephew of “Lullaby”).
For a song with a duration over four minutes, it feels as if it’s cut short. The soaring, almost choir-like section before the outro could have been much longer. They could have really milked the chilling vibe they had going for them. Nonetheless, it’s a good song. Especially to drive to… At night. Seriously, though, give it a try. Just don’t blame me when you find yourself buying unnecessary leather gloves and a white satin jacket.
