Bobby Halvorson’s new single, “California,” is a sunbeam slicing through a Swedish winter, a musical letter home, drenched in memories and longing, yet also infused with wry humor. Produced during a dark, windy season while far from his roots in Northern California, Halvorson channels both long words for sunlight and the bittersweetness of returning to a homeland shaped by climate change. The result is a song that registers as both intimate and expansive, ultimately bridging memory and reality with ease and grace.
“California” is a lesson in detail. The multi-instrumentalist Halvorson paints, layering vibraphone, flute, bassoon, cello, French horn, and clarinet, to conjure up textures that reflect the natural beauty of the Sierra Foothills. Assisting him are Dyne Eifertsen on trombone, Tony Marvelli on flugelhorn, and Emma Peabody on violin, with additional environmental bird recordings that root the soundscape within the earth of "California". Mixed by John Lowell Anderson and mastered by Daniel Eaton at Little Castle Mastering, the production strikes a balance between clarity and warmth, allowing each instrument and memory to breathe.
The song also pays homage to the golden-era Beach Boys, but wears its influences gently, using low-key humor as a way of grappling with grief and memories. Halvorson’s narrative is small but impactful, a personal history refracted into one universal story about home, displacement, and the passage of time.
"California” isn’t just a song, it’s a postcard, an exercise in meditating on place and memory as well as the small, quiet details that define them both. It is a reminder of Halvorson’s extraordinary power to unite virtuosity and emotional depth, giving the listener a ride that feels both familiar and utterly fantastic. By the last note, you’re fully bathed in "California" sun and down with its shadowy side, all in one incredible track.
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