Seattle jammers, Forest Ray are back with their third full-length album Faded Reflection. That word – faded seems to be key in figuring this band out and their groove. The song “Back To Bed” sounds like remnants of a sixties revolution song, folksy and bluesy all at once, and as that sound has faded into memory for some, Forest Ray takes yesteryear’s echoes and catapults that synergy into today. It grooves. It moves. “Back To Bed” is a comfy jam.
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/forestrayrecords/
The chorus, “I can’t even leave my head, I gotta go back to bed” is repeated several times. The lyrics are musings and I interpreted the song to be about a person that has the weight of the world on their shoulders. How does one expect to make decisions or even create art, when the words and the sounds are stuck in their head? The obvious choice, then, is to just go back to bed. We’ve all been there – procrastination, ignoring, being oblivious or even depression.
The musical bridge is a nice foray into a more bluesy second half. Much of the musicality on “Back To Bed” is centered on the back and forth between the guitar, flute (yes, flute), organ and hints of a vibraphone. The brightness from the vibraphone gives the song a gentler, more timid tone. Now, we’re all experiencing the second coming of the flute due to Lizzo, and who can forget Jethro Tull. Forest Ray never overuses the flute and it’s enough to stand out and just the right amount to give it the folksy, sixties hippie flavorings. In general this songs just feels like a group of friends coming together and creating music. I love that they are based in Seattle and they juxtapose the idea of a rainy, hues of dark green everywhere next to a song that feels very sunny, with mixtures of reds, yellows, browns and a fiery pallet.
SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/forestray/backtobed/s-y3MNx
Forest Ray is Peter Sumic, Sebastian Brown Glad, Eric Junge, Simon Olander, Brennan Moring and Brendan Mcgovern. According to the band’s biography, their first record, Musical Witchcraft, was released in October 2016. Their second album, Laughing, landed in August 2018. They have toured extensively, with stops at 2019’s SXSW. Faded Reflection is one of two releases this year for Forest Ray – along with a collection of tracks recorded in Sumic’s basement on his 8 track, The Wedgewood Tapes. They seem to have a thirst for nostalgia and recording live to tape. That’s not what gives a song like “Back To Bed” it’s magic, but it sure helps give it the vintage tint. This song gets it magic from a band like Forest Ray – they have the juice.
YOU TUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-wSFpxyTiQ4LcKxSf2Z4FQ
What’s the final verdict? Great stuff here. “Back To Bed” is a song that puts fire in the belly and soul in the morning. One you jump out of bed, you’ll be grooving to “Back To Bed”. Faded sounds that are hanging on or not, Forest Ray put their own stamp on an enjoyable song ready for prime time.
Jodi Marxbury