Solid Lines’ self-titled debut offers a deeply compelling introduction to Austin-based auteur Greg Barkley’s playfully melodic, warmly soulful electro-pop song craft. Effortlessly winsome tunes confront the ups and downs of human affairs while balancing introspective melancholy with the transcendent uplift of pop perfection.
Solid Lines – which picks up where Barkley’s previous band, the acclaimed indie combo Oh No Oh My, left off – marks the artist’s return to music after a three-year hiatus from recording.
Solid Lines is the product of that burst of renewed creative inspiration. Although he enlisted the talents of such friends as Shivery Shakes bassist Will Glosup, and Oh No Oh My drummer Joel Calvin and keyboardist Tim Regan (who co-produced the album), Barkley mostly wrote and recorded Solid Lines on his own, finding creative inspiration in the solitude.
Barkley’s compositions on Solid Lines pack a consistent melodic and emotional punch, pressing sonic and emotional buttons in ways that stick with the listener long after the music fades. “For better or worse, I wanted to make an album full of songs that crashed ahead full steam without slowing down,” Barkley notes.
Today Glide is excited to premiere the standout track “Shine On Me,” a cool indie rocker that layers in elements of pop alongside a steady beat. Seemingly simple, the song offers a hopeful outlook with clever lyricism and a smooth, straightforward vocal delivery. The shimmering groove brings to mind fellow Austinites Spoon, but with a tone that feels slightly more laid back and less urgent. The infectious tune hits a high in the final minute with an impressive and dreamy guitar solo that captures the jubilance and optimism of the music.
Barkley describes the inspiration behind the song:
“For the most part, the songs come from a place of nostalgia for a time when you’re young and wandering through life free of any major responsibility. But in a way, it’s also an album of love songs for my wife and kids, thinking about all the paths I could have chosen and the one that I ultimately took that led me to where I am now.”
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