Title: “Sunday Night Smoke Signals”Release: April 17, 2021
Genre: Indie-Pop, Alternative Pop
Length: 4:17
Label: Studio60 Records
Producer(s): Jonas Haaland
Writer(s): Jonas Haaland, Danielle Leone-Wilde
“Sunday Night Smoke Signals” is a song by American pop duo VANDALS, the recent Studio60 Records signee’s consist of multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Jonas Haaland and singer-songwriter Danielle Leone-Wilde. Taken as a promo single and the very first official introduction for the former New York based musicians that now find themselves based in California. It’s unknown whether this track will make the cut on their debut album or will remain as a stand-alone single but it indicates the sort of sound and lyrical content to be expected from the alternative pop duo as they make their first foray into the music industry with this debut major label release. The song was written and composed entirely by Jonas Haaland and Danielle Leone-Wilde with production handled by Jonas Haaland with his experience as a songwriter, producer and head of creative at Studio60 Records giving the duo a helping hand in the production of the track without much outside interference.
According to songwriter Danielle Leone-Wilde on a recent social media post, “This is a song about love in the social media generation and the crazy games that come with that. That feeling on a lonely Sunday night just hoping that your phone will buzz from the one that you love in that moment with those three beautiful words, ‘you still up?’. Whether you’re the one sending the message or waiting on that message. Some call it a booty call and diminish what it truly is, but from my experience it’s often too stubborn people allowing themselves to be vulnerable and taking a chance on something. Sometimes it’s leads to something more permanent within your life and sometimes it just is what it is. But the idea of the song is taken from that vulnerability aspect and I believe that the feelings expressed in the track are very much universal to a lot of people today, at least from the ages of 17 to thirty-something or even beyond.”
The track was recorded at Studio60 Recording Studios in West Hollywood, California and is set to be released on April 17, 2021 as a CD Single, Digital Download, 7” Single as well as being made available to Weekly Airplay and all major streaming platforms.
Song DescriptionThe song begins with an emotive and almost eerie piano intro alongside a very soft acoustic guitar strumming heard faintly behind it, setting the scene and giving the song an immediate thought provoking feel to it, some studio trickery included to add a dreamy sound to it almost sounding like the wind whistling in the background, setting the scene for the opening lyrics delivered by Jonas in a low almost purposefully monotone voice,
“Sunday nights are dangerous when you’re twenty four/Emotions run high on emptiness and anxiety.” Which immediately set the tone for the story that’s about to unfold throughout the song.
“Fingers trembling at the smoke signals in the form of the texts that we compose/Even worse at the ones that we receive/But in those lonely hours, in our moments of complete weakness/We’re reaching out to you/And you’re reaching out back at us” as he sings about the vulnerability involved in opening yourself up to the possibility of the thing that you want most in any given moment, all delivered with the backdrop of the moving piano tones that set the scene like something out of a movie,
“How we feel in the cold light of day doesn’t mean much to us right now/We just need something to take a little of the pain away/Just to take a little of the pain away” and within the first verse, it feels like a song very much tailored to the current generation of today.
With the opening verse in the rear-view mirror and the idea and theme of the song very much clear to the listener, female vocalist Danielle jumps into the track amidst the very same music structure as the opening verse, an interesting idea of them both singing on the same chords and sounds but delivering their own feelings on the same idea as Danielle tackles the more intense internal emotions within your mind and heart, in her slightly more effeminate but brooding vocal delivery,
“My friends suggest that I’m foolish/My brain thinks I’m being a little fucking crazy/My heart is convinced I’m being reckless/My conscience doesn’t even seem to wanna know me” which shows the different sides of the internal battles as Jonas sang about struggling with the idea and anxiety of giving in to his emotions and being vulnerable, while Danielle sings about the battle within her own mind and conscience and the constant voicing dissuading her from the thing that she wants the most in that moment,
“But this is what we do/We reach out/And we hope the outcome will be different/Why is love so fucking addictive?” which ends the second verse on a very universal question.
The music continues in the piano driven mood from the opening verses as we arrive at the pre-chorus and chorus section of the song but the tones of the piano keys feel more prominent and urgent as Jonas bellows out
“If you love somebody, if you love someone/If you love somebody, if you love someone.” which leads into the songs chorus as the acoustic guitar can be heard increase in volume alongside the now fully dominant piano chords and the late arrival of a drum beat to add emphasis to the songs chorus as both voices from Jonas and Danielle come together, Jonas’s low masculine tone combining well with Danielle’s slightly more unique tones as they sing together,
“Life is too short to keep playing the game/If you really want somebody/Then let them know/If it’s meant to be then it’ll be/If it’s not then it will go” which is simplistic but delivered in a way that makes it feel a little more special and fits in with the pre-build and post-build to the chorus. The post-chorus following exactly the same idea of the pre-chorus as Danielle repeats the words previously sung by Jonas,
“If you love somebody, if you love someone/If you love somebody, if you love someone.” which gives the song it’s big dramatic build and execution before the music reverts back to the same piano and acoustic combination heard earlier.
A final trade-off of verses between Jonas and Danielle before the songs chorus comes back in see’s Jonas arrive at the forefront once more, singing lyrics drenched in the thoughts and anxieties of the loneliness felt while waiting around for a response or some sort of indication,
“Spent too many lonely weekends laying in bed with my phone on my chest/Just hoping it’ll buzz and wake me up/Wondering who’ll blink first between the two of us” which gives the imagery needed to bring home the idea of the song in as little space as possible, an idea which continues as Danielle sings out almost the exact same lyrics over the backdrop,
“Spent too many lonely weekends laying in bed with my phone by my head/Just hoping it’ll buzz and wake me up/Wondering who’ll blink first between the two of us.” and emphasizes the idea that both sides often are living in the very same moment with the very same feelings but both afraid of making that step to get what it is they’re searching for. The music rises once more with the songs pre-chorus, chorus and post-chorus playing out the rest of the song as the music softly plays out, slowly fading as the track comes to its conclusion.
“Sunday Night Smoke Signals”Key;
Jonas Haaland – Blue
Danielle Leone-Wilde – Red
Together – Bold“Sunday nights are dangerous when you’re twenty four
Emotions run high on emptiness and anxiety
Fingers trembling at the smoke signals in the form of the texts that we compose
Even worse at the ones that we receive
But in those lonely hours, in our moments of complete weakness
We’re reaching out to you
And you’re reaching out back at us
How we feel in the cold light of day doesn’t mean much to us right now
We just need something to take a little of the pain away
Just to take a little of the pain awayMy friends suggest that I’m foolish
My brain thinks I’m being a little fucking crazy
My heart is convinced I’m being reckless
My conscience doesn’t even seem to wanna know me
But this is what we do
We reach out
And we hope the outcome will be different
Why is love so fucking addictive?If you love somebody, if you love someone
If you love somebody, if you love someoneLife is too short to keep playing the game
If you really want somebody
Then let them know
If it’s meant to be then it’ll be
If it’s not then it will goIf you love somebody, if you love someone
If you love somebody, if you love someoneSpent too many lonely weekends laying in bed with my phone on my chest
Just hoping it’ll buzz and wake me up
Wondering who’ll blink first between the two of usSpent too many lonely weekends laying in bed with my phone by my head
Just hoping it’ll buzz and wake me up
Wondering who’ll blink first between the two of usIf you love somebody, if you love someone
If you love somebody, if you love someoneLife is too short to keep playing the game
If you really want somebody
Then let them know
If it’s meant to be then it’ll be
If it’s not then it will goIf you love somebody, if you love someone
If you love somebody, if you love someone”
Credits & PersonnelCREDITSProduced by Jonas Haaland
Engineered by Jonas Haaland
Mixed by Jonas Haaland
Recorded at Studio60 Recording Studios, West Hollywood, California, USA
PERSONNELJonas Haaland – vocals, lyrics, piano, guitar, drums, composition, production, engineering, mixing
Danielle Leone-Wilde – vocals, songwriter
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