Mira Lazuli
“Good News”
“Good News,” the latest song from singer-songwriter Mira Lazuli, is an intimate exploration of situational romance and its emotional aftermath.
Inspired by a starry-eyed attachment at the Barefoot Farmer’s Solstice Festival in Tennessee, what started as a charming romance evolved into a convoluted long-distance situation-ship where sporadic phone calls substituted for the closeness of a relationship.
Lazuli shares, “Do you know what it’s like to share your location with a lover in a long-distance situation-ship? This song came out of that feeling. Trying to make sense of distance, silence, and the stories we tell ourselves when we’re waiting for someone to reach out.”
Mira Lazuli is an Algerian Québécois sapphic folk artist based in New Orleans. A classically and jazz-trained multi-instrumentalist, Lazuli’s unique sound amalgamates elements of French, folk, Mexican, and jazz into emotionally rich songs about queer relationships, healing, and self-discovery.
Mixed and mastered by Bob Gaiser, “Good News” features the talents of Lily McKay (double bass, vocals), Rosie Adams (vocals), and Ezra Meyer (guitar, banjo, vocals).
“Good News” opens on a bouncy melody made up of banjo, bass, and an accordion. The rhythm reveals the cadence of Appalachian music blended with Sicilian folk, dollops of Zydeco, and delicious Eastern European-flavored three-part harmonies that convey a halo of emotional loneliness and isolation. At once wonderfully retro and alluring, the gilded flow of the vocals echoes with forlorn timbres.
The lyrics of the song interlace images of palaces, fairies, messengers, and moonlit beds alongside street names, telephones, snacks, and herbs. The phrase “I got no thyme, no rosemary” carries semiotic allusions. Thyme signifies protection from melancholy, while rosemary love, loyalty, and remembrance.
Simultaneously vintage and contemporary, with “Good News,” Mira Lazuli creates a bittersweet and beguiling soundscape of mood and momentum.
Featured image is by Nick Leonard.
