The New York singer-songwriter Elijah Mann has made a name for himself across the country as an indie folk artist who’s a fantastic performer with poignant lyricism. Earlier this month, Mann released another single titled “Bungalow Song”, his fifth song produced by the acclaimed Adam Tilzer (Keith Richards, Valerie June, Norah Jones). Like always, Elijah Mann is a descriptive storyteller with his music, and his talent of poignant lyricism continues to take place during “Bungalow Song”, yet with a pinch of dreamy hope within this song about escapism.
“Bungalow Song” is a simple acoustic folk song with vocals over the intertwining finger picking of guitar and banjo. Mann’s music can be compared to modern day folk artists like Christian Lee Hutson and The Milk Carton Kids. However, the doubled vocals and harmonies joined with the flowing melody and chill vibes of the song can be comparable to indie legends Simon and Garfunkel, specifically in the chorus. Whoever anyone would like to compare Elijah Mann to is irrelevant, because he clearly knows the ins and outs of writing an indie folk song.
Through the soft, catchiness of the tune and beautiful lyrics, Elijah Mann has created such an atmospheric and empathetic song of adventure, and making a “great escape” into the woods of upstate NY. There’s a juxtaposition of emotion, going back and forth between the feeling of hope and then into defeatism and back again. The purpose of the song goes from the freeing happiness of buying a bungalow to “find a little quiet, and we’ll waste our days” to darker lyrics like “I gotta believe that things will be alright, but that is a lie I’ve served and swallowed up, like daily cyanide.” With his beautiful lyrics, Mann depicts escapism as following a dream and running away all at once. This soft, seemingly simple folky ditty is more complex than it appears in its first listen.
Written by Autumn Martin
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