Brooklyn dreampop duo Paperwhite are highly skilled at crafting huge songs, such as “Galaxy” and “Magic,” that transport listeners to some higher, freer plane of existence. On their new single, “Get Away,” they implore us to do that a bit more explicitly, using a more expansive means than they’ve ever used before.
On “Get Away,” which will be a part of a forthcoming EP, siblings Katie and Ben Marshall play up their finely tuned soft-loud and small-gigantic dynamics in an almost anthemic fashion.
Katie’s laidback verses touching on new love and the question of intimacy are supported by an understated backbeat and some colorfully smooth synths and manipulated backing vocals. When she hits the chorus, there are sounds that soar as if unencumbered by anything on the ethereal plane. Thunderous crashes follow, reinforcing both the enormity and the grounded-nature of the song’s subject matter.
There’s also something very geographical about “Get Away.” I could see the Iceland or Grand Canyon travel bureaus licensing it for an ad campaign. The message: Don’t you want to leave that box you’re in for something greater or bigger or more stimulating — some place where your feet are only just firmly on the ground and where you can take soul-refreshing breaths? Either with love or travel, the song is genetically predisposed to make listeners dream big.
Which reminds me that the video for “Get Away” was actually filmed in Iceland. (The song is a Brooklyn product, although it certainly sounds like something made in Iceland.)
Earlier this year, shoe company Converse gave the Marshall siblings the opportunity to go to the Nordic nation to record music and see the sights and such, all as part of its Rubber Tracks initiative to offer free studio time around the world to emerging artists.
I’m curious to see what came out of those sessions. If it’s anything even close to “Get Away,” I think Paperwhite will please their existing fans and attract a whole hell of a lot of new ones.
