Singer-songwriter Maya Hawke (“Blue Hippo”) released her second studio album “MOSS” on Sept. 23. The album follows her critically acclaimed debut “Blush” from 2020.
To call Hawke a singer-songwriter is like calling Ted Kascynski a mathematician: there are some important details left out. Hawke is best known for her role of Robin Buckley on Netflix’s hit series “Stranger Things.” On this new album, however, Hawke’s acting career feels tucked behind the curtains of a coffee shop open mic stage. Her dreamy folk ballads emulate the intentions of Taylor Swift’s (“Carolina”) pandemic serving “folklore” with a warm guitar that feels like a kindling furnace, and whispery vocals that also call to mind the efforts of Phoebe Bridgers (“Sidelines”) and Clairo (“Sling”).
When Swift dabbled with indie folk, she was met with accusations of “cosplaying indie” despite her world stardom. While one can still argue that Swift’s motives were as authentic as any artist’s, Hawke’s Netflix employment does not supercede her songwriting and performance on “MOSS.” To mention Swift a lot is not coincidental because the sound of “folklore” is worn heavy on this record.
Opener “Backup Plan” kicks off the record with a humble song, which lists several images and objects. The objects chosen could describe an Instagram moodboard with pencils, a kitten, and a winter coat. “I wanna be anything you’ve lost that you might be looking for,” she sings. Her vocals are layered to an indie folk industry standard, yet Hawke’s whispery timbre matches with the harp-like guitar plucking to create a lullaby atmosphere. Her high pitch is like Miss Honey singing a tune to an upward gazing Matilda. These blood-pressure reducing vocals are present throughout the album. One could say that this aesthetic is anesthetic.
In fact, listening to the first track fulfills a promise of how the rest of the album sounds. “MOSS” sticks to a homogenous sound that can lull after a while. The album’s title is aptonymic, in a way, since moss is very soft but does not grow far. After a few listens not many tracks seem to resonate as memorable or replayable. The melodies seem improvised and undaring, though Hawke herself has said that she sees music as “the best way to communicate poetry,” so catchiness may not be the goal here but lyricism.
Hawke’s words do sound like poetry with specific imagery evoking various scenes of decade-old tweeness. On “Sweet Tooth” she sings about breaking her molar on a cherry, which is a metaphor for love somehow. “Thérèse” is inspired by a painting by Balthus of a young girl reclining with a gray kitten (“She reminds me of memories/Sleeping off the growing pains”). “Mermaid Bar” is indeed about Hawke dreaming of opening a “sardine dream mermaid bar” for patrons to eat scallops, hear a song, or to let their problems melt away.
The lyrics do add sparkle to a record with the boldness of an underboiled mug of tea, even if the production drowns out their impact with slurrish vocals and dense instrumentals. Occasionally, such as in “Thérèse” or “Bloomed Into Blue,” a fuzzy electric guitar will interfere for a much needed dynamic change, and the vibes swell up into something shoegaze-y like Slowdive (“Slowdive”).
When it comes to “Stranger Things” stars entering the music scene, despite its flaws, this album still mogs whatever Calpurnia (“Scout”) was supposed to be. Give it a listen if your Starbucks competitor needs a relaxing vibe-inducer. “MOSS” is a product of Mom + Pop Music.
Image from Maya Hawke via YouTube
