It Don’t Have To Be Spoken

Satya “Oakland”

“Oakland” is a fairly tight 3:30 pop song that moves with a very light touch and an unhurried feel, perfectly evoking both a relaxed and natural dynamic with someone and a strong gravitational pull towards them. Satya’s vocal is very low-key in her cadences but there’s a fire in her phrasing, making her sound like someone who feels calm and controlled in the moment but is on the verge of being overwhelmed by passion at any moment. The more rhythmic vocal parts are the hook here but the soul of this is in the melodic nuances – lead guitar parts that move between hesitance and eloquence, a warm bass groove that tightens up for an unexpected bridge, vocal harmonies towards the end that leave the song feeling open-ended. There’s not a lot of tension in this song, but that feeling of “what happens next…” is so potent.

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