Music Review: Somehow – Evoke

La Fheile Padraig sona dhuit and, for those non Irish speaking folks, Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Before you go off and paint the town green, let us kick off the celebrations by introducing (or reintroducing) you to Evøke. For those of you who are new readers of the guide, Niamh and I became very fond of an up and coming Irish band, Evøke. Since it’s been a while since Evøke have made an appearance on OMG, we’ll give you the full run down of exactly who they are before we get to the important part of this post. Evøke is a four piece indie/pop/fusion band from Loughrea in County Galway. Now, why am I talking about Evøke now? Well, they recently dropped their latest single, ‘Somehow’, and we just had to review it. ‘Somehow’ is a song that laments loss and is packed with emotion in every possible way from music and production to lyrics. So, let’s have a closer look at ‘Somehow’!

‘Somehow’ is a plea for someone to stay; to me, it’s that simple. The person that this song is about is well able to put on a brave face on the situation even though they are very clearly running out of time together. Personally, I love the image of picking a star to look up at so the connection between the singer and the subject of the song will remain even if they are apart. It’s a very emotionally charged song. It’s abundantly clear that this departure hurts and that it is inevitable even though the singer is trying to avoid it. Based on how you interpret the song, you’d be forgiven for believing that this song is not about the end of a romantic relationship but rather the loss of someone near and dear. This song could easily be associated with the loss of a loved one as well as the end of a relationship or even the end of a significant era of life but, without a doubt, loss is central to this song. Loss is a universal concept that we all go through and understand regardless of what form it takes. ‘Somehow’ also does not specify the relationship between the singer and the subject so it could easily be interpreted as a platonic or romantic relationship. The fact that the song can be interpreted in multiple ways ensures that the listener can identify with the emotion of the song and empathize.

The song’s production is simplistic. There’s nothing in the song to overcomplicate the track and take away from the emotion and meaning behind the lyrics which I think is ideal for a track like this one. The use of the acoustic guitar and string instruments captures the melancholy tone of the lyrics and the fact that there is just one acoustic guitar on its own and no drums or typical accompaniment accentuates the looming isolation that is being conveyed in this track. When listening to this track with headphones, you can hear what sounds like slow piano keys in the background of the track which emphasise the growing distance. They almost sound like drops of water (or tears). Overall, ‘Somehow’ is fantastically structured so that the heavy feeling of impending isolation is evident regardless of how the listener decides to interpret the song. Evøke consistently avoids creating the same kind of song twice and, each time they release a new single, the song shows the level of care and attention the band put into their lyrics, musical inclusions and production.

‘Somehow’ and ‘Somehow (Acoustic Version)’ are available now on all your usual streaming services and you can find and follow Evøke on Instagram too to keep up with all they’re up to.