Two recent tracks from Simple Sailor showcase a powerful, personal rock sound. “Walking Home” and “Off the Coast of Del Playa” both come via Simple Sailor’s upcoming EP, Crashing Waves, out in September. The project began in 2003 as the high school songwriting partnership of Dan DeMaria and Owen Norquay, both moving to Toronto in the early 2000s and then re-connecting over a decade later to focus on Simple Sailor.
The EP’s second song release, “Walking Home” enamors in its heart-aching, reflective ruminations — while also pondering on the occasional calming nature of solitude. “I see you in my dreams at night,” vocals let out amidst twanging guitar enjoyment, invoking a sense of yearning as the starry-eyed guitar work escalates into the powerful “whenever I’m walking home” refrain. The track’s production stirs in its range of lusher dreaminess and more rousing rock theatrics, the latter of which take hold especially through a sating second half.
Released earlier this month, “Off the Coast of Del Playa” builds with more patiently unfolding momentum. Sporadic percussive stomps, solemn guitar tones, and a wordless vocal envelopment takes hold initially — escalating enjoyably as the vocal tones ascend into a cathartic burst of guitar distortion. “Somewhere off the coast of Del Playa,” the vocals ring out there. The track references the area of Dan and Owen’s hometown Goleta, California — and the college town of Isla Vista and infamous party street Del Playa Dr., specifically. The “this is my home” vocal ardency furthers that sense of connection, amidst reflections of leaving one’s hometown, though still looking back upon it with personal memorialization. Both tracks are shining examples of Simple Sailor’s immersive songwriting.
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These and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
