Holly Arrowsmith releases moving Americana single 'Blue Dreams', completing her trilogy of deeply personal tracks from her upcoming album, also entitled Blue Dreams, scheduled for release on 26 July 2024 on Leather Jacket Records.
Holly's storytelling in 'Blue Dreams' explores her experience of first-time parenthood, her honest narrative and intimate vocals caressing the song's imagery into the ether. Although these moments are very much her own, they are profoundly understood by many others. Holly says, "I was a first-time parent in the middle of a pandemic, surviving in those early days of chronic sleep deprivation. I realised I had never heard a song about this transition, especially about how hard it can be in those first months when you are so exhausted and trying to work it all out. I felt this huge burden of responsibility, bringing life into such a turbulent world." Finding solace in community, Holly sought refuge in conversation with other people. A repetition of themes emerged: loneliness, worry, exhaustion, loss of identity, evolution, awe, deep love, protectiveness, responsibility. "I wanted to show a real domestic scene, not a glorified one. The often invisible work of Mothers, especially. Those messy, imperfect, sometimes lonely, tender and mundane days with your beautiful baby, time in suspension - for a time."
'Blue Dreams' begins with multi-tracked acoustic guitar, followed by the warm resonance of Holly's vocals, creating an Americana groove reminiscent of early 1970s Neil Young. Holly's lyrics skillfully paint a narrative depicting the challenges of retaining your sense of self that is suddenly and unexpectedly consumed by new parenthood. The scenarios are familiar, the ending uplifting.
Holly's journal of musical ideas is teeming with words and phrases, jotted down as they bloom. "The two words ‘Blue Dreams’ were so beautiful to me that I wrote them down for safe keeping. Sometimes a song just springs from two words like this, and the meaning is revealed in the process."
Holly's innate and honed songwriting talents were celebrated in May, the second time she has taken home the coveted APRA Country Music Song of the Year; on this occasion, Holly's song 'Desert Dove', also on the upcoming Blue Dreams album, nabbed the award.
Produced by Tom Healy (Marlon Williams, Bic Runga), and accompanied by an all-star cast of New Zealand musicians (Cass Basil, Anita Clark, Alex Freer), 'Blue Dreams' transports us through the essence of early parenthood isolation to a hopeful and positive familial future.
BLUE DREAMS MUSIC VIDEO
The music video for 'Blue Dreams' was shot on film in the beautiful Mackenzie Country of Southern Aotearoa. The wide-open spaces are a contrast to domestic life which can feel constricting at times. Under the direction of Naomi Haussman and Si Moore, Holly wades into an icy cold pond of swans to take a dip in mid-winter; maybe it was a baptism, which becoming a parent is.