GONE FOR GOLD/CODE DE TELECHARGEMENT INCLUS

Description

While the hot sun hits your face in the early afternoon as you drive to escape the pressures of life at home, a certain chord seems to speak to your young heart, giving you a direction to take your life in hand. Oakland via San Francisco. 'Smiles' evokes that magic on their new single for Slumberland Records’ 30th anniversary series, in which the renowned independent label will release a collection of 13 7" singles by various artists not signed to the label over the next 18 months. Smiling pop master from their hometown, 'Smiles' has left his dark days behind to embrace a more melancholic sound reminiscent of the more serious moments of Elliot Smith or Superchunk. Manny (?)’s songwriting project has been releasing music under his pseudonym since early 2014, starting with a self-titled EP with a nod to the first 7" album in 2016, released by the cult San Francisco label Melters Music. On this new track, an electric pattern guides us toward an unknown destination before a lush acoustic guitar hits you like a ray of light cutting through a dark corridor in the early morning. “Well, you say it’s gone for good... spending like this for a while, now it’s turning bitter,” Manny admits as the flourishing coastal road that has been sketched out adds another dimension to the pain. We often find comfort in being alone after the end of a tumultuous relationship; it is during those long drives to nowhere or at dusk when the sun goes down that we look out into the world and discover our self-esteem, reminding ourselves that what we feel will calm down. “If that love were still true, you’ve had your finger on the trigger for so long,” Manny echoes, questioning the once overflowing tenderness that has turned into a wounded artifice unable to go on. We realize that the affection we feel once the relationship has ended will always be there, but it is up to us to make peace: perhaps that is what we did instead of letting the other take responsibility.