Star Parks Looks Back Wistfully on a Relationship That Could Have Been if Only the Commitment Had Been Stronger on “Something More”

With its single “Something More,” Star Parks sounds like it’s simultaneously drifting in the influence of 90s indiepop and Gold Star Studios recordings. The plaintive vocals are produced to give it a lo-fi sheen to match the vintage tonal quality of the song and in contrast to the uplifting melody and energy that runs throughout. It comes across like someone looking back on an old romance and thinking about what they wish they had been able to say and express rather than the exact words at the time things were ending. Though the words are remorseful and melancholic it comes from a place of having moved on. Lines like “I just needed more than you can give” and “Don’t say I love you, I can’t go back” suggest the wisdom of hindsight projected back to a present tense conversation. And there’s no malice in the song, just some mild yet heartfelt regret and savoring of when things were going well mixed together in equal proportion. The horns and elegant keyboard flourishes give the song a sweeping, dreamlike quality that serves as an unexpected counterpoint to what might otherwise be heavy subject matter to look back upon. Listen to “Something More” on Soundcloud and look for the group’s full length album The New Sounds of Late Capitalism.