“The fantastically crafted structure and blend of vocals, production and lyrics in ‘Home’ is what makes it such an enjoyable listen and a song that will never escape your playlist.”
Brooklyn based indie project Skinny Dippers, fronted by Ryan Gross, have been keeping up their laid back beach style sound with their undeniably dreamy new single ‘Home’. It’s been almost two years since their debut ‘Panties’ came along, and have amassed over 17,000 listeners along the way.
A whistling sound awaits us, backed up by a breezy guitar, the imagery so strong that we feel like we’re lying by the sea already. One of the first things you’ll notice after the hazy intro is the storytelling lyrics, discussing the topic of change. Lyrics like “But things seemed so simpler when I thought we might stay” and “the colors of the leaves begin to change” conjure up nostalgia in our minds, whether we can fully relate to the lyrics or not.
The chorus of ‘Home’ really tugs at the heartstrings, mainly due to the heartfelt lyrics about change, but also because of the perfectly structured guitar notes between ‘I don’t want to go without’ and ‘leaving something behind’ that you’ll no doubt pick up on. Even so, Skinny Dippers doesn’t abandon the dream pop sound ever so emphasised by the faultless soothing vocals we hear from beginning till end. Instead, the heartfelt lyrics and the relaxing indie sound create the superb juxtaposed blend of melancholy and upbeat.
Upon asking Ryan Gross about his creative process of making ‘Home’, he said, “Home is actually one of my very oldest songs, but one that I knew had to be a part of my debut album as a sort of ‘origin story’. I’m dating myself here, but I wrote this song in 2012 in college when I moved to NY to attend NYU. It was finals week and I really wanted to avoid writing a paper, so I sat down with an acoustic guitar and wrote both ‘Home’ and another song that’s going to be on the album called ‘Big City, Small Apartment’ in about an hour. Both of them were about missing home and looking forward to the carefree days of summer when I could hang on a beach with my friends.”
The song ends with pristine harmonies drowning into a fantastic extended instrumental. Such sounds are a perfect way to to end ‘Home’, showcasing all it’s aspects and atmospheres through one last immaculate display of instruments.
You can listen to the song here: