“Right away, Reservoir Valley hits us with a head-bopping intro into their first single, “May”. The guitar riff establishes itself as the recurring musical motif throughout the first half of the song, and it emulates a lot of similar indie artists such as Surf Curse, The Red Pears, Wayword, etc. with the treble-y rhythmic guitar playing two chords back-in-forth.
The song doesn’t stay in that progression for very long as they give us some variation in the chorus which is nice and catchy. The melody and the lyrics are intriguing and clear enough to where after listening to it a few times, you can catch me mouthing the words while driving down the road. The songwriter makes their point clear: “Take your time, but I don’t want to be tied on a leash for you.” This lyric stood out the most to me. Despite the fact that I haven’t experienced going on a break with a partner, it still resonated with me. I assume that if your partner initiates a break, it must make you feel stuck and like you can’t move on from a relationship that obviously isn’t working out. The pain and frustration just gets drawn out for longer, and I can hear these feelings in that lyric in particular.
Another aspect of the song that I enjoy is the transition from the first half into the second. I think it’s very well done! The ringing phone, brief dialogue, and the somberness of the singer's voice contrasting the almost exasperated cadence in their previous vocals pairs well together and enhance the meaning of the song. I also enjoy the theatrics of hearing the protagonist of this story talk about their partner initiating a break and to “take their time” but then hearing the partner finally calling them to talk things out at the end. It makes you listen closely to the lyrics to hear the fate of these on-and-off lovers in the short story we’ve become invested in.
Overall, I think “May” is a fantastic introduction into Reservoir Valley, and I’m interested in hearing what else they might come up with in future releases.”
Be sure to check out Reservoir Valley and stream their single, “May” everywhere you listen to music!
Stream "May" on Spotify:
Stream "May" on Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/may/1654300601?i=1654300602&ls
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