Rod Coote – “Driftwood”
photo by J e d
From Melbourne, Australia, singer-songwriter Rod Coote returns to the blog with “Driftwood,” an indie folk tune that encourages listeners to trust the ebb and flow of life.
Coote is no stranger to our blog, and songs like “Oceanside,” “By the Coastline,” and “Blue Lake” are already in our constant rotation. With “Driftwood,” he has once again teamed up with producer Hayden Calnin to bring us an atmospheric slice of modern folk reminiscent of the work from The Paper Kites and Novo Amor.
Like a gentle siren, an orchestral tone drones in the distance while an acoustic guitar delicately maps out the song’s structure. If you’ve been to a Hazlett show, you’ll already be familiar with the kind of vibe Coote is building here, as these ethereal textures are often used to saturate the soundscape in stripped-back, acoustically driven songs.
In this case, the reflective nature of the arrangement is echoed through Coote’s vocal performance. Much like the aforementioned artists, his voice rests comfortably between a raw, unprocessed delivery and a reverberating wonderland complete with meticulous multi-tracking. This is especially notable on the pre-chorus, with the arrival of his falsetto.
At the midpoint, “Driftwood” reveals an understated rhythm comprised of a subdued kick and snare–it could very well be played on the back of an acoustic guitar. The final double-stack of choruses adds a bit more emphasis on the beat with the incorporation of a tambourine, but the star of this show is Coote’s voice, which consistently reminds us that if you trust the process, life always brings you home.