The term “false sense of security” has never been more appropriate than for Forest Hall’s new single. Detailing the effects of this past year on the man-children of the world, it’s a song for the times if we ever saw one.
I’m just going to say it, this year has been some top tier f*ckery. From start to finish, chaos has lurked around every corner and anxiety has felt second-nature. On their latest single, Forest Hall serve us the soft, groovy catalyst.
The Quiet Life lulls you into its silky, synth-laden melodies, offering a lush, textural oasis for us to rest among. You find yourself finally pausing for breath. That’s until the Blue Mountains trio burst your eardrums and smack you across the face with a dirty, garage chorus. It’s 2020 in a nutshell.
It seems that during this year, audiences and artists alike have turned to soothing melodies as a balm. A conduit for healing and restoration, music has been one of the few ways that we have been able to completely escape our surroundings. Aesthetically, The Quiet Life speaks directly to this movement. Flowing in with tides of synth and refreshing beats, the song feels as much like a lullaby as it does a sparkling sojourn through nostalgia.
However, Forest Hall have never been a band to mince their words and it only takes a minute or so for their true intent to come to light. Where their video had originally traced lush choruses through an “Eden” of sorts, the baby-masked trio proceed to splatter the scene with rough, nauseating imagery. Audiences are then chucked aggressively back in the softness of their original verse, transforming a once calming single into a deeply haunting one.
“Starring the infamous FriendlyJordies of Youtube acclaim, the film clip follows the life of a hapless man child in 2020 as he battles through all the highs and lows of The Quiet Life,” the artist’s bio reads. “From hanging out and jamming in the garden of Eden to existentially confronting and battling with himself, it’s all out on the table. So come and dip your toe, the waters lukewarm.”
The Quiet Life traces the instability of life back to those who have not yet learnt how to live. Scrawling nuance along the margins of satire, the off-beat, synth jam has captured the moment as clear as day.
Check out the video below:
