Drown [DSD EP]

Drown from John Babel is the title track of this DSD EP. It tells the story of someone searching desperately for purpose. Relationships, whether it be romantic or otherwise, are often transient. When they end, they can leave us with feelings of displacement or not belonging. In this way, Drown can be seen as a continuation on the events of Gwen. Drown talks about the horrid end to something you clung to for far too long, and the limbo you must walk to reunite with yourself afterwards. A lament of sorts.

John Babel brings you an eclectic sound of acoustic ballads mixed with an avalanche of dark synthesizers and orchestral compositions. The appeal of this is that it can go anywhere. Each song is unbound by convention while still retaining a distinct hopeful, yet solemn sound.

The song Gwen is about feverish love; knowing that someone isn’t good for you, but still feeling unable to let them go. Most people will know a Gwen in their lifetime, someone they’ll never forget. Whether people clinging to dwindling flames, or finding themselves beaten down each time they try again with someone, it’s always hard to let go. However, we learn the meaning of love from these experiences most of all. That is what Gwen is about.

Burn Your TV is about the struggle for agency. To be able to think and act for oneself. To not willingly be a pawn in the game of life.

It talks about the hardships we face to understand one another, both on a social and physical level, and how susceptible we are to authority. It talks about how we take so many things at face value when it is presented to us on a plate of supposed authority or expertise, and that we must always struggle to be aware of this. If we don’t, we might end up living electric dreams, with no truly autonomous thought of our own.

This fight or struggle is symbolized in the song as fire. This critical thought is a fire that must be fed, that must grow. And once it grows big enough, it will burn away the things that blind us.

John Babel