The Sombre and Sincere Side of the Apple Charts: Carly Lind advocates compassion and self-care with latest single ‘Chloe’
Pop music nowadays can be a strange and unforgiving realm, with sentimental love songs sitting next to empty-headed rap hits and vacuous hard-house thumpfests. This makes it especially nice when you come across a pop artist who brings an air of sentimentality, connection and sincerity through their music, and that’s exactly what American songwriter Carly Lind carries in her latest, beautifully polished single Chloe.
Single Review: Chloe
For people who like…pop, rock, downtempo.
Carly Lind is an independent singer-songwriter, dancer, and content creator based in California; who from one look at her IG is quite clearly on a mission not only to release mainstream hits, but also promote a sense of connection, maturity, wellness, and positive mental health through her content and music. And her latest single Chloe is no different.
The delicate strums of her guitar at the beginning start the song off with a very sombre and minimal tone, and that’s exactly what I love about it. Just a solid drum beat, captivating lyrics about a past relationship, and her exceptional voice populate the rest of the track.
You’ve been looking for a way out, of all the trauma
You try to catch your breath in an airtight jar of, drama
Chloe is a love song about her estranged sister (you guessed it…Chloe); and with lyrics such as the ones above it’s clear that this is a sentimental tribute to a past relationship that lost its way. While it’s obvious that their kinship is long gone, and may not have ended on the best terms, the chorus lyrics (below) really exemplify a mature, forgiving and compassionate attitude to one’s failed relationships and past traumas – something which I think is beautiful to see from a pop artist in 2023. Also, the high notes Carly hits when singing the chorus really show her exceptionally talented singing ability, all in combination with her truly poetic lyricism. She’s also dropped a brilliantly crafted music video to accompany all this, well worth checking out below!
Chloe, Chloe, I’m exactly like you
Chloe, Chloe, I’m exactly like you
While musically speaking there may not be an abundance of components here, I think that’s what makes this song so authentic, enchanting and sincere. It’s just Carly singing her heart out over immaculate instrumentation and production. It’s a prime example of her talented songwriting and ability to champion self-healing in the art she creates. Carly could have made a screamy, self-indulgent, and obnoxious track filled with noise and overproduction about this same subject, but she didn’t; instead she’s provided a gentle example of perhaps how these kinds of situations should be dealt with. There are many other mainstream pop artists that would probably have expressed this with more combative and childish characteristics as mentioned, but Carly has just provided a simple, clean, and sombre single that promotes such a commendable message.
I’ll be honest, sombre pop music isn’t usually my thing, but there’s no way I cannot appreciate this; and the fact that the chorus kept playing in my head all day after hearing it initially, shows there’s a good chance you’d probably appreciate it too. Show your appreciation and go give it a listen!
