Overcome with heartbreak and strain, Albin Lee Meldau’s soul-stricken “The Weight Is Gone” gives new life to an old story of cheating lovers who never change.
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Out of all the various words we use to describe music, no genre description is more accurate and on-the-nose than soul. From Otis Redding to Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye to Aretha Franklin and beyond, the titans of soul made their mark with songs that came from an ethereal, intimate place of truth: They gave themselves over to the music, and it glowed with their presence.
Though the stories, names and faces have changed, today’s soul music still comes from that deep and special place, and nowhere is that more evident than with Gothenburg, Sweden’s Albin Lee Meldau. “The Weight Is Gone,” Meldau’s latest single (released 2/9/2018 via Astralwerks/Caroline International) finds the emerging artist overcome with hearbreak, internal tension and emotional strain as he confronts his unfaithful partner.
Everyone knows, the things, you do.
All of the grief, you put, me through.
Every time, you tell me how it’s gonna be.
Draining all my energy, dunno what you do to me.
Every time, you tell me that you need a change.
But you could never stay away,
you know you break my heart.
Every time you leave.
“The Weight Is Gone” – Albin Lee Meldau
It’s a story we’ve heard before, yet somehow Meldau manages to give it new life and fresh meaning. The soul-striken artist croons heavy-hearted cries the likes of which you seldom hear in this age – and damn, if it doesn’t strike a chord inside.
Feels like the weight is gone,
the weight is gone.
Feels like a weight is gone,
a weight is gone!
What makes “The Weight Is Gone” so special is the way it unabashedly revives the Motown sound. Thick, sweet strings deliver countermelodies against a humble bass and controlled jazz guitar. The song’s build is slow and carefully crafted to collapse into itself – and every time the instruments melt away, we’re left with Meldau’s warm voice haunting our eardrums.
It’s a voice full of pain – of sorrow and regrets, nostalgia and longing. Meldau makes known his love for this significant other, despite their cheating ways, though evocative moans and passionate howls that scorch the air around him.
We can feel the burden of emotion – it’s hot, and it hurts. Time and again, Meldau calls his partner out, but he cannot help but let them back into his life: They promise they’ll change, do better, treat him right. And “every time you leave…” well, it feels like the weight is gone.
Every time, you tell me how it’s gonna be.
Draining all my energy, dunno what you do to me.
Every time, you tell me that you need a change.
But you could never stay away, you know you break my heart.
Every time you leave.
Feels like the weight is gone, the weight is gone.
Feels like a weight is gone, a weight is gone!
And while you could posit that Meldau’s narrator finally feels relief when the members of this turbulent couple go their separate ways, that weight still lingers in the air – hanging low, like a dark cloud that just refuses to pass. Maybe they’re meant to continue this dance routine on a neverending loop, cycling through a series of emotional wounds until the bruise becomes a scar, and they’re too numb to care.
Maybe then, the weight would truly be gone.
A fresh face on 2018’s horizon with two EPs already under his belt, Albin Lee Meldau is a definite artist to watch as he gears up for his major label debut album. Connect with the artist via his socials below, and let yourself loose with his stirring new single, “The Weight Is Gone.”
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:: stream/purchase “The Weight Is Gone“ ::
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? © Fredrik Skogkvist
