Silver Lake is the Netherlands-based art-pop duo made up of Marleen Hoebe and Jesse Koch, and they’ve recently released their incredible second single in the form of ‘Violet’. A laid-back and dreamy little number, ‘Violet’ is a beautifully warm and enticing tune that sucks you in and refuses to let go. Hoebe’s vocal performance is simply stunning, and just further adds to the tranquil, soothing atmosphere that Silver Lake has effortlessly crafted.
Lyrically, ‘Violet’ gets pretty deep, and examines the darker and more melancholic versions of ourselves. Ultimately though, Silver Lake are quick to point out that, “the song’s main message is the importance of the human capacity to turn around negative spirals.” Inspired by artists like Lana Del Rey, Air, and Karen O, the accomplished duo are beginning to make a real name for themselves on the scene, and we at Indie Top 39 believe they deserve all the praise that comes their way!
A dreamy, warm, and laid-back little number, ‘Violet’ showcases just what Silver Lake are all about!
INDIE TOP 39
What does the song mean to you?
‘Violet’ describes a kind of dark shadow version of yourself. The version you embody on days when all color seems to have disappeared from the world. But the song’s main message is the importance of the human capacity to turn around negative spirals. To me the song is a reminder that feelings are just temporary, most of the time they are just passing through you. I think that is a very hopeful thought. It makes it easier to turn around such a spiral and focus on how you do want to feel and what you want more of in your life.
Tell us about your creative process and how the song came to be?
Marleen: This song started out with just Wurlitzer and vocals. I wrote it in a tiny attic, back when we were still living in Amsterdam. Later, we filled in all the other sounds and instruments together.
We love mellotrons and vibraphones, so they are both all over this song. ‘Violet’ was the only one of the bunch for which we were somehow extremely specific about the tempo, 1 or 2 BPM more or less (which is a minimal difference) really seems to make a difference for this song. Jesse also played all the drums on the recording himself. The perfect take was the one directly after lunch. He had a lot to eat, and that made for the perfect laid back timing.
What are your favourite lyrics in the song?
Marleen: “Whirling whirling motion, like a purple flower dangerous and deep, Once in a while when it get’s hold of me I can hardly sleep, I call her Violet for her sadness and her melancholy, Why can’t it all just be acceptable, acceptable to me?”
I like it because it think it’s a nice visual way of describing a feeling, by making the feeling into a person and a color. That really speaks to my imagination. Ever since I wrote this song about it, I can recognize this specific mood well, and it’s a good mood to be in for being creative as well. Still feeling powerful and in control in this kind of heaviness, I can get a lot of inspiration from that.
What do you want to achieve in the next 12 months with your music?
We are very happy we got the opportunity to play some amazing live shows here in The Netherlands these past months. We love playing live! It adds an extra layer to the music when it can be performed live and you add an audience to the equation. We really hope in the next 12 months that we’ll have a successful release of our debut album and and it is a dream of ours to do a tour abroad eventually.
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Now you can listen to all the 39 songs in one place, right here on Spotify!
This coverage was created in collaboration with Musosoup as part of the #SustainableCurator movement.
