Singled Out: Tanbark “Heart-Shaped Locket”

Some songs just make me smile, and the moment Chloe Nelson’s voice utters the first words of this tune, the corners of my mouth begin to creep upwards across my face. I am a sucker for a song that feels like it could have been released 40 years ago or yesterday. A timeless quality. Beautiful simplicity etched in time that is flowy, buoyant – almost weightless in quality – and elicits a sense of happiness and joy. A song that burrows itself deep into the recesses of your brain and leaves a tingly glow that keeps you with an odd sense of light that lingers. Thats what Tanbark does here.

Who: Tanbark

From: Brooklyn, NY

Song: “Heart-Shaped Locket”

Latest Record: self titled LP out May 31st

What About It: “’Heart-Shaped Locket’ was inspired by a locket that I got at an antique market in London. I carefully drew tiny illustrations of people in it, and this personal touch unintentionally made the people indecipherable to anyone but myself. A locket is something you wear closed in plain sight, hiding the things or people that you most treasure. I wanted to evoke hastily purchased gift shop tchotchkes and a getaway car with dusty pink dice on the rear-view mirror, rolling out of town. Halfway through the song, the narrator gets a bit less reliable; she pleads and maybe longs for something she does not quite have.” – Chloe Nelson