Hazy Shea is an Indie Pop singer/songwriter whose style sparked from the various music genres she was exposed to growing up. Although artists like Janis Joplin, Lauren Hill and Lana Del Rey inspire her, Hazy Shea has a niche style that is evident in her music. Her single, “Golden Gates” combines her love for Psychedelic Rock, R&B and pop. With undeniable elements of funk as well, “Golden Gates” can be described as a jazzy, funk inspired, pop tune. Hazy Shea has been most compared to Lana Del Rey with the soulful sound of Adele.
This track features both a great beat and a great leading vocal melody. It’s a song that provides the good vibes of music in its simplest, perhaps most easily enjoyable form – as opposed to taking advantage of a moment in which you can showcase your own vocal abilities or personality. That’s not to say either of those are missing from this, far from it – the leading voice sounds beautiful and characterful, it’s a gorgeously smooth performance, and it blends in perfectly with the mood and ambiance of the music. The effect though, is that you can get lost in the good vibes of the song, as well as appreciating the individuality in a subtle way – the sort of way that makes you likely to search for other songs from the same artist as you let this one play out around you.
The soundscape has a similar feel to a lot of recent vlog soundtracks, that smooth and jazz-inspired touch of trip-hop – the ongoing, hypnotic energy. It calms you down, and it doesn’t distract you from anything – instead, it allows you to drift off into your own thoughts. The lyrics offer a lot, but the lines are short and partly personal, partly accessible to all. The rhythm of the leading vocal ties in flawlessly with that of the musicality. The track works as a single artistic unit, so the effect of the music is maximised. There’s a strong sense of structure but not in the way that pop music generally functions. This alternative, jazz-cafe vibe is refreshing right now. You could quite easily listen to a track like this on repeat and barely notice – it could be three minutes or ten minutes long and the vibe would still work as effectively.
By Rebecca Cullen
Rebecca is a Musician and writer from Manchester, UK, with an MA in Song Writing
