Vargen – “Mindy Morning”
Vargen – “Mindy Morning” – Single Review
As much as I try not to have too many wild expectations or hopes of anything that I choose to listen to, it’s hard not to have some here, given that the last time we ran into Vargen in 2020 with the release of his record Love/Leave – 11 Songs Of Bob Dylan, this guy knocked it straight outta the park and helped educate my music knowledge even further in the process. I was excited to see this name pop into my inbox and back onto my playlist – this time with an original tune of his own no less – and it’s probably high time I shared the results with ya & my thoughts on “Mindy Morning,” officially released yesterday.
Just as I thought I’d find, the quality of Vargen’s music remains plenty intact, even without the comfort of taking on a cover tune. Here with his first original offering from a rumored brand-new album coming up, “Mindy Morning” still explores that retro sound we know that Vargen loves, but there’s no doubt whatsoever that it’s a timeless style of songwriting that really never gets old either. So you get that hit of something borrowed, something blue, something old, and something new all at once through a track like “Mindy Morning” and chances are, you’ll feel the same as I did…which is anything but disappointed.
The gentle & dreamy sound of this single is perfectly realized through the way that Vargen, aka Reine Johansson, sings it – and the band he’s rockin’ with knew exactly the right gear to help bring this song to life as he envisioned it. Somewhere in the realm of delicate-but-confident, you’ll find the sound is mellow, but the material is strong – make sense? Essentially, “Mindy Morning” may appear to be a gentle tune, because largely it IS…but it’s also built stronger than steel through smart songwriting and professional execution too. That’s what I’m tellin’ ya…it bold in the sense that you can audibly hear the justified confidence in the song & the way it’s played…Vargen and his crew of talented musicians in the band found the perfect way to give this single everything it needed, without overplaying a second of it.
Add in some stunning textures & tones via the production and clever additions like the ol’ Mini Moog in action – and like I said, you’ll find that this song is every bit as relevant for the right here & now as it would have been equally back in the 70s. Vargen has no reservations about rocking in an old-school way, and nor should he – everything about his whole sound, style, and vibe is entirely timeless and a song like “Mindy Morning” will prove me right as the years go on & on and this cut never gets any older. Not only does the musicianship & sound selection stand out for all the right reasons, but I gotta say, it’s magnificently impressive with the sheen & shine applied in the production from Fredrik Larnemo. They say it takes a village to raise a child right…and in my opinion, the reality is much the same when it comes to creating a great song. It might start with the seed from an incredible songwriter like Vargen, but it’s largely also due to how much talent & dedication surrounds him as well that we hear such stellar results in this tune. Now it’s all grown up and ready to leave the nest…*sniff *sniff…it feels like it was just born yesterday, and here we are now, it’s already graduated, it’s getting its own video, and quite likely, going to find a nice, comfortable home on your playlists. I know it’s found one on mine already…and while part of me felt like there was a good chance that would happen long before I’d even pushed play knowing just a fraction of Vargen’s previous work through my past review on it here at our pages – I still felt like somehow, “Mindy Morning” managed to exceed any of the wildest expectations I could have had. The dude’s got a genuine gift when it comes right down to it…and I highly suspect that comes from a connection with a time long past, that’s still every bit as fresh in his mind and heart to this very day – and it’s because of that, Vargen is able to transport us the rest of us so easily to a different era of sound when we listen…and we follow so willingly. A tune for the lovers and dreamers out there – “Mindy Morning” has a beautifully warm spirit, storyteller’s style of writing, and radiant display of flawless instrumentation & vocals combined – no lie folks, it’s got me completely looking forward to Vargen’s upcoming album, the one after that, the one after that, so on & so on…this dude creates audible magic.
Find out more about Vargen from the official website at: https://vargen.net
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