Music Existence Because of Music, We Exist
As much an agent of seduction as the vocal is in this track, the groove supporting it in Bryn Ryan VanDyke’s “Go Long” has a rhythmic command over the audience from the moment we press the play button forward. There’s no separation between the singer and the beat in this single; hers is a singular control over the percussive force catering to the emotional tone of the lyrics, and by the time we reach the midway point in “Go Long,” it’s as though we’ve joined the fabric of the instrumentation as well.
Deeming a song like this one ‘immersive’ doesn’t do it justice, and I think its lyric video extends much of this point without ever having to step out of its cut-and-dry aesthetical frame. The simplicity of the source material is undeniable in this type of setting, but more so is the feeling that we’re witnessing something completely cohesive and entrancing, no matter the medium through which it’s enjoyed. I review a lot of hot pop out of the states and the international underground but scarcely do I see a talent off of the mainstream radar developing the kind of multidimensional look Bryn Ryan VanDyke seemingly does so easily here.
VanDyke takes the harmony into retro territory in the second half of “Go Long,” but as far as conclusions go, she couldn’t have given the finish line in this single a better embellishment. Though the groove is constantly a reminder of the post-millennium streamlined swing we’ve heard throughout the pop music spectrum over the past twenty years, the melodic adornments it receives at the end of this track are straight out of the old school. It’s a perfect juxtaposition of themes old and new alike, and something I didn’t expect to run into so late in the song.
I had no idea what to expect from the increasingly buzz-worthy Bryn Ryan VanDyke this October, but I was quite pleased to find her new single “Go Long” and the song’s lyric video weighing in as heavy as they do. There’s a lot of drive to this rhythm that reaches from behind the speakers and drags us into the texture of the music itself, and in comparison to what the mainstream has been pumping out in the last year, this kind of cerebral songcraft is a most welcome treat indeed. I’ll be looking out for more of VanDyke’s work, and you should consider doing the same.
Jordan Raab
