Blending sweet folk rock and rich country harmonies, Maya Elise & The Good Dream’s “Mailman” soars as a beautifully tender love song and an intimate ode to connection and understanding.
Stream: “Mailman” – Maya Elise & The Good Dream
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The song is part love song, part warning about codependency, and fully an ode to early 2000s feminist country artists.
It hurts to feel worlds apart from someone you love; to be so close, and yet so far away, due to our inherent differences – whether it be in communication, self-expression, or something else entirely. It’s all too easy to feel alone even when we’re not alone, but we can often do something about that distance if we really try – and in her band’s latest single, Maya Elise looks for ways to bridge the gap and come closer together. Blending sweet folk rock and rich country harmonies, Maya Elise & The Good Dream’s “Mailman” soars as a beautifully tender love song and an intimate ode to connection and understanding.
Sleeping in the corner of the bed
I lost the covers once again
My whole left side is blue
You’re dreaming like its ‘92
When falling down was beautiful
And getting up was easy
Before we knew our parents lied
Before we ever compromised
So I got up and poured a cup of chamomile tea
You said “can I have one too”?
I said “it’s already brewing”
Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Mailman,” a charming outpouring of warmth, affection, and yearning. Maya Elise & The Good Dream’s first single of 2022 arrives just over a year after the group’s radiant LP Songs for the Breakdown, a breathtakingly intimate and expansive folk record that highlights Elise’s strengths as a songwriter, vocalist, and performer, while showcasing her full band’s (M’Gilvry Allen – fiddle & vocals, Jordan Lowe – bass & vocals, David Lipps – drums) ability to bring that evocative writing to life in sound.
“Mailman” is another such display of that resounding, undeniable talent, with Jackson Vanover joining The Good Dream on electric guitar. The band’s new single finds a balance between organic acoustic and electric instrumentation, with layers of vibrant vocal harmonies driving home Elise’s message of hope for finding that long-sought after middle ground. She shines in a bright, spirited chorus readymade for singalongs sung at the top of our lungs:
I’m the mailman at the door and
You’re the freight train in the morning
Singer in an uptown bar
You’re the whiskey in a jar
I can drink you up tonight and
You can lose another fight
But if we both hold on too tight
We won’t be holding for long
“When I was writing ‘Mailman,’ I was thinking about the way we often don’t know how to express our love in a way other people will understand, and we often miss the mark,” Maya Elise tells Atwood Magazine. “When we learn to understand each other’s’ love languages, we can start to let go of the cliche ways we think a relationship is supposed to look. We find comfort in consistency – the mail comes every day, the train comes each morning – and sometimes we have to learn to trust the ones we love even without daily consistency.”
“Mailman” is admittedly one of Elise’s boldest, grandest songs to date – a shining example of her ongoing and continuous growth as an artist.
“In terms of production, I loved the interplay between a classic ‘country rock’ vibe, and some more modern production elements that felt riskier for me as a folk-artist, but I love being able to play in the studio,” she says. “I feel like recording a song allows you to capture a moment in time, and it’s liberating to let go of the need for each song to define who I am as an artist.”
So I drank my tea got in my car
Drove up to the corner store
When I came back you up and left
A piece of paper on my desk
The note it said I won’t be long
I love you like a Britney song
You’re classic, and you’ll never age
One more time I read the page
So I sat under the manzanita just see the red
Thought I could sit there for years, hoping that you might appear
A rousing ode to intimate connection, “Mailman” is a gentle giant of country-folk beauty.
Maya Elise & The Good Dream dive into the inner workings of our relationships in such a way that helps us to feel seen, felt, and heard. Her lyrics are honest: At once poetic, yet grounded, her words paint a relatable image of those frictions every deep relationship, be it romantic or friendly, goes through: The miscommunications, the overthinking, and so on. Ultimately, we’re reminded that it’s all a give-and-take; a fine balance that requires effort and, above all, trust from both parties to succeed.
Just like the mailman at the door and
Like the freight train in the morning
Singer in an uptown bar
You’re the whiskey in a jar and
I could drink you up tonight and
You could lose another fight
But if we both hold on too tight
We won’t be holding for long
Whether you find comfort, catharsis, or inspiration from “Mailiman,” there is no denying the sheer warmth of this song. Stream Maya Elise & The Good Dream’s new single exclusively on Atwood Magazine, and remember: We can always find new ways to connect with the ones we love the most.
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Stream: “Mailman” – Maya Elise & The Good Dream
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