Daffo, the Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Gabi Gamberg, and their latest single, “Winter Hat,” which encapsulates that bittersweet holiday haze.
“Winter Hat” does not rely on nostalgia, sleigh bells, or phony cheer. Instead, it’s a nakedly personal meditation on the season’s quiet melancholy, in which no amount of layers, no matter how cozy, will keep the cold from creeping in. Splaying over gurgling, crunchy guitar and off-kilter drums courtesy of the producer Philip Weinrobe (recorded at Sugar Mountain Studio), Gamberg’s spacious, toasty vocals fall like a gentle snowfall, soft but dense with meaning.
“Winter Hat” finds its jotters mired in mundane, mechanical details , pitching up a dead tree, bundling up against the cold while still experiencing that inescapable winter “weight.” It’s that sort of song that lands on you while you stare out a fogged-up window as life continues to flow around you, and you’re at a standstill.
With “Winter Hat,” Daffo’s signature sound is part lo-fi warmth, and part indie-folk vulnerability comes through, making “Winter Hat” the kind that lingers long after the final note disappears. It’s an ideal anthem for those who are a little out of sync with the season, showing that the coziest songs are sometimes those that allow a little cold to creep inside.