A tender reflection on the transient nature of emotions and our attachments to other people, Glasgow-based songwriter Chloe Trappes aka Dayydream has self-released her debut EP, Bittersweet. Filled with delicate guitar strokes, dreamy vocals and affecting lyrics, Trappes ruminates on distance and desire across five tracks, and the way these things can shift our perspective towards ourselves, and to others over time.
Influenced by the likes of Elliott Smith, Nick Drake, Mazzy Star, Neil Young and Slowdive, Trappes creates music under her Dayydream moniker to distract herself, but simultaneously explore the troubled state of mind she craves relief from. “I’d do anything / to keep hold of that feeling” she reveals on Bittersweet‘s tender opening track ‘Disintegrate’, clinging to a moment that has already passed. Her soft guitar picking compliments the “up and down” nature of the tumultuous mood she describes in the song.
An aching melancholy underscores the poignant ‘Wasn’t’, which reflects on the pain of leaving behind someone who isn’t good for you. The rainfall sound effect that seeps in and out of the song enhances the feelings of isolation Trappes sings of, and bleeds into the equally as confessional ‘How Lonely’. Whilst the lyrics in these tracks can be dispiriting, Trappes’ calm, clear vocals and considered, dreamy instrumentation prevent them from feeling too heavy. She relies on her dream-pop tendencies to soften the sharpness of her observations, with the gloomy but graceful ‘Cursed’ epitomising this outlook.
“Daydreaming can be a positive or a negative,” Trappes comments on the inspiration behind her moniker. “It can be a way to invent an imagined universe, a safe place to stay sane and distracted from the chaos of the real world. However, it can also cause a person to retreat, creating a disconnect in their lives.” On closing track ‘Sweet Release’, Trappes beautifully balances these conflicting states, yearning for escape and relief, whilst feeling overwhelmed by the reality of being “so broken” at the time of writing.
An intuitive, affecting collection of songs that drift through the exquisite highs and intangible lows we experience on the path towards emotional resilience, Dayydream’s debut EP is a comforting and blissful ode to feeling in all of its intensity.
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Photo Credit: Eléonore Marty-Guiraud
Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut
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