ELLA VOS IS CONFLICTED ON "STATE OF EMOTION"

LA' s Ella Vos explores the push-and-pull of new love on "State Of Emotion."

Modern love is complex, as we so often say here at We Are: The Guard. On one hand, every person is pushed to be completely self-sustaining and self-sufficient. Any sort of expectation or hope or demand can be read as codependence. Opening up and being intimate and vulnerable can be interpreted as over-sharing. This creates an atmosphere where a significant portion of the population, especially those under 40, strive to be "chill," to just "let things go and see what happens." This is creating a whole new generation of "cool girls" and "playboys", fronting at being emotionless, impervious, hidden behind a thick wall of cynicism and a carefully cultivated public persona.

Emotions are much slower to evolve than the rules and mores of society. Changing the narrative around love and romance doesn't negate the entire cultural history and expectations around relationships, love, and commitment. Some of these might even be rooted in biology, but we'll not delve into the complicated debate around nature vs. nurture in a humble indie pop single review.

“STATE OF EMOTION” - ELLA VOS

Rising indie pop star/singer/songwriter Ella Vos opens up about this confusing terrain on "State Of Emotion," the newest single from her upcoming new LP, Turbulence. "State Of Emotion" begins with Vos literally diving into the deep end, burned out on the confusing and conflicting emotions of a (seemingly) new relationship, which she equates with a sort-of sunstroke.

Lyrically, "State Of Emotion" deals almost entirely with oppositions and dichotomies - hot/cold, push/pull, high/low. If Vos were to post about this relationship on a dating forum, there'd be a thousand comments telling her to run, not walk, as far and as fast as possible. It doesn't sound healthy, like when she opens up about not being able to differentiate between emotions - "Not sure which are yours/and which are mine." If you've ever been in love, however, these sentiments are likely to ring true. Compound this with Vos self-identifying as an empath, she's clearly a deeply emotional, sensitive, and in-tune person. Love doesn't have to make sense on paper and, in fact, rarely does.

"State Of Emotion" just goes to show that love cannot be easily broken down to an algorithm. It's not a math problem to be solved. It's not a political framework that needs to be adhered to. It's messy, dirty, confusing, elating, uplifting, raw, and all-too-real. She reminds us that it's okay to love how you love. Just remember to take care of yourself and check-in frequently. Even when things get rocky, you can always make art and music about it.

J. Simpson occupies the intersection between criticism, creativity, and academia. Based out of Portland, Or., he is the author of Forestpunk, an online journal/brand studying the traces of horror, supernatural, and the occult through music, fashion and culture. He plays in the dreamfolk band Meta-Pinnacle with his partner Lily H. Valentine, with whom he also co-founded Bitstar Productions, a visual arts collective focused on elevating Pop Culture to High Art.