Boston-based act Am Was showcases “So Helpless” and “Hurt Coyote” from their new album There Was Still Time to Live, delivering a heartfelt sound steeped in rock and folk. “So Helpless” stirs in its initial piano-laden balladry, lyrically compelling in its “this turbulence will pull us down” ominousness and “no terminal” resignation — particularly impactful in the context of its plane-crash setting. “My empty mind inside a cloud,” the vocals further amidst the solemn piano, then venturing into steadier rhythms and gentle guitar work. The narration — “she pulls a vest out from the chair, though there’s no water anywhere” — continues that sense of imminent doom, artfully accomplished into more rousing, distortion-heavy rock allure.
Another standout, “Hurt Coyote” captures a similarly emotional vein of songwriting, described by the act as about “melancholy dream about a coyote I saw while working on a farm one morning.” Twangy guitar tones and “where’s the hurt you once needed to feel?” vocal questioning combine for a climactic, introspective allure, moving into dreamy vocal harmoniousness and touches of keys. Both of these tracks are thorough songwriting successes from Am Was.
Stream these tracks and the rest of their new album, There Was Still Time to Live, below:
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These and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
