PELA, the duo of Olly Shelton and Hannah Coombes who delight in a line of stoned immaculate, blissful chillout, have just dropped their latest single, “In The Young” – you can watch the lyric video below.
We’ve covered the singles they’ve been dropping right through the summer: we found “South Of” “set us adrift on memory bliss” with “the emotional reach of Sia”; and we said of “Reverie”: it’s “a summer evening in four minutes”.
They’re getting so much word-of-mouth support and once you step into their garden you’ll see why: production guru Olly has a way with a nuanced and graceful breaks atmosphere, which is the ideal foil for Hannah’s diamond of a voice. If it was available on prescription, the world would look happier, trust me.
“In The Young” comes in on a placid piano motif and a very now percussive shuffle. That bpm and some distant, lambent sighs from Hannah: you know you’re gonna be OK. She lets her lyricism unfold at just that pace this song needs – and your head needs. There’s little trippy edges, with backwards-masked guitars and other ambience.
The combination of the video, comprised of Super-8 footage, and the lyrics, and you’ve got this lovely pause for reflection, to gather your thoughts. It has such a lightness of touch.
The only cloud on the horizon? Damn 2020. It could’ve upped its game and given us the summer these songs deserved.
These days, the pair are dividing their time between South London and Brighton. “In The Young” brings the shimmer of the sun on lapping sea.
Olly and Hannah say: “‘In the Young’ began life as a piano loop Olly started playing just as we were finishing a session in Tottenham (back when we had a little studio space up there).
“From this, the melody and lyrics came organically and the complete song formed soon after.
“It’s a really special one for us.”
It’s a pretty damn special one for us too, guys.
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