Alela Diane - “Dusty Roses”
Photo by Kelsey Gallagher
Portland-based singer-songwriter Alela Diane wins us over with her new single, the achingly human, indie folk track “Dusty Roses.”
“Dusty Roses” is a tender and sentimental indie folk song that sits in that lush, earthy and melancholic space that Alela Diane is making her very own. The result is a sound that is immersive and vivid with organic texture, reminiscent of Joni Mitchell or Gillian Welch.
The composition is founded around a Travis-style fingerpicked acoustic guitar pattern that tumbles hypnotically through the arrangement. Steady and quietly propulsive, it imbues a sense of yearning, searching for meaning and reflection with the glowing melancholic notes. Over the chorus sections, the pastoral radiance of banjo jangles alongside widening the horizon.
Cutting against the gentle foundation are moody, dark, vivid staccato pulses of gritty rhythm electric guitar that feel almost like rain clouds in the distance. Slicing through the mix like passing shadows. The percussion is kept on a tight leash, lending a heartbeat and warmly reinforcing the mid-tempo sway. Beneath it all, a reflective pad breathes airily and hauntingly, like a draft moving through an old room. Weathered, quietly enduring, the music is simply sublime.
Alela Diane delivers a clear, intimate, introspective and quietly aching performance that carries a powerful sense of stillness. Each lyric is allowed to drift and settle naturally on your ears. Supported by wonderful harmonies it is a vocal that will linger long after the final line fades.
On “Dusty Roses” Alela Diane adds: “I wrote this song about a dear friend of mine whose path took a wrong turn a number of years ago. I think she’s still alive, but no one knows where she ended up. I believe that we all have the capacity to lose ourselves along the way. I’ve seen it happen again and again, whether through mental health struggles, drug use, addiction, trauma, depression, or grief. So many of us have seen someone we love lose the light in their eyes, and become a stranger to themselves. It feels like we’re all just teetering on the edge, and some just don’t have a sturdy enough footing to get back on track. This one is for all the lost girls.”
“Dusty Roses” is the third single to be taken from the forthcoming album, Who’s Keeping Time?, which is due out on May 22 via Fluff & Gravy Records / Loose Music.
North America pre-order Album HERE
Rest of the world pre-order album HERE
Connect with Alela Diane: Spotify | Bandcamp | Instagram | Facebook
You can also spin this song in our playlist: