Written by Marilù Ciabattoni
Discovered via Musosoup
Marlene Larsen’s “Galore” is a surprisingly seductive track that starts like a rock song and continues like a mix of… everything! Being Marlene’s first-ever single to see the light in the music world, I can imagine she wanted to combine as many influences as possible.
For starters, I love how seductive and mysterious the singing is, which pretty much contrasts with the rock feel that opens the song. There’s this dichotomy of feminine vs masculine that Marlene explicitly admits in the lyrics as well: “Lately, I’ve been feeling more masculine, feminine. What does that even mean?”
The lyrics are fairly explicit from the beginning: “Kiss me,” Marlene sings. “Can someone please grab my neck?” Unapologetically, she expresses her sexuality through her words but also her cadence and intonation. However, this doesn’t mean the insecurity disappeared completely, and in fact, she asks: “Do I dare become someone I’ve always wanted to be?”
After a brief rock interlude characterized by electric guitars, the intensity of the track, also given by Marlene’s singing, reaches a first climax before she declares, “I surrender,” and the volume winds down a bit.
But she hasn’t actually surrendered: after changing rhythm, melody and arrangement all over again, she goes for a final round of singing at the top of her lungs. Until we get to the question that closes the song, “Do I dare become someone?”
A big part of the appeal of the song is also the vocal harmonies built over each other. I particularly love this question-and-answer effect we hear on several lines, as well as the juxtaposition of loud and quiet, tender and aggressive.
I’m excited to see how Marlene Larsen’s music will evolve from here on!
Discovered via https://app.musosoup.com #sustainablecurator