Tune-In Tuesdays #9: Hazel by Roy Blair

By: burgundy bug

• 

Cat Heaven by Roy Blair

Source: Hazel | Genius

This Tuesday, we’re tuning into the dreamy, melodic Hazel by Roy Blair.

A Bit of Context…

The 22-year old indie singer-songwriter Roy Blair got his footing in the industry as the backup vocalist for Kevin Abstract of Brockhampton before the debut of his solo-album Cat Heaven in 2017.

As of Mar 2019, Blair is approaching 900,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and has 15.5k followers on SoundCloud.

Hazel

The last track on Cat Heaven, Hazel, is a melting pot of various genres such as indie, folk, and hip-hop.

Blair lures the listener in with glitchy sound effects before laying the foundation for the rest of the song with a folky, acoustic guitar melody.

Once the drums come in, the acoustic guitar takes a back seat to various pops, clicks, and vocal effects.

Blair utilizes transitions and pitch move fluidly between elements cherry-picked from a Smörgåsbord of genres.

The song begins fading out with simple, pitched vocals over hums and violins before ending abruptly with a door slam and the flick of a light switch.

Hazel itself covers some very intense, personal topics. Blair uses the last track on Cat Heaven to discuss hardships he’s faced throughout his life – his mother being diagnosed with cancer, his aunt passing, as well as his cat passing (hence the name “Cat Heaven”).

[Verse 1: Roy Blair]
I was riding on Beverly by myself
I was working at Yummy, no daylight, hell
You were coming over once a week, wearing my [lap?]
You held me while I cried for the first time in a long time
Never really good with people or comforting them
My mom diagnosed, brother crying in his hands
I said, “If she died, who gets to keep my cat?”
Don’t know why death would affect me like that
But it did
Least my mom still lives
But my cat’s gone
Where my childhood is?
Where my innocence lived
On a Fifty Street
Thirty minutes from where I sleep
But I miss my bunk bed
And the sunsets
And the old friends
And the dead ends
Even when I didn’t have a reason to smile
But I still did
Love songs going like this for ya

[Hook]
Nights in your RV I won’t remember
Rides in your car seat, I won’t forget
Nights in your RV I won’t remember
Rides in your car seat, I won’t forget
If you don’t feel my groove, better move out
If you don’t fit the mood, [what are you out?]
If you don’t feel my groove, better move out
If you don’t fit the mood

[Verse 2]
Fuck being modest
Got me in bed with you
More alive than ever
Quit eating junk food
Same pants all week
Got bleach on the side
For when you dye my hair green
Looks blue, but you tried
The times where I thought it was love were just peaks
A mountain a month, between terrible weeks
All this bad company
But everything I hate is a product of me
Can’t take back what I’ve been born with
My family gorgeous
Flaws and I won’t ignore them, they’re important
Keeping these friends until the end cause they’re important too
Sammy got my back, and I got Jack’s too
But that don’t mean everything squeaky clean in between
That’s really just how much they all mean to me
And rest in peace to my cat, Gary, and Aunt Jane
Steve, Kitty, Mary, [Cousin Jason, Rhonda, Richard?]

[Bridge: Lucy Loken]
Just stay forever
You just stay forever
You just stay
Can you just stay the night?

[Hook]
Nights in your RV I won’t remember
Rides in your car seat, I won’t forget
Nights in your RV I won’t remember
Rides in your car seat, I won’t forget
If you don’t feel my groove, better move out
If you don’t fit the mood, [what are you out?]
If you don’t feel my groove, better move out
If you don’t fit the mood

(Reversed Audio)
If you don’t fit the mood
If you don’t fit the mood
If you don’t fit the mood
If you don’t fit the mood

[Outro]
((And I just — there would’ve been no pain if I had gone back and never met him))

Source: Hazel | Genius

Blair reflects upon his reaction to his mother’s diagnosis, relationships, and other memories that even manage to evoke a sense of nostalgia for the listener.

On Twitter, Blair has made multiple reference to how important this track is to him as an artist.

family or hazel https://t.co/3GyAAwfK9q

— roy blair (@royblair) December 12, 2017

listen to “hazel” https://t.co/iRmQc4RrtB

— roy blair (@royblair) December 12, 2017

In Conclusion

Hazel is a dreamy compilation of genres, very similar to the style of Brockhampton.

Although Blair’s experiences with Brockhampton seems to have an underlying influence on his work, he retains a unique identity as an artist. It is wonderfully refreshing to see the direction he went in with his debut solo-album, Cat Heaven.

Blair continues to release music as a solo-artist, with the premier of his latest single Dennis in 2018.

Currently, Blair is on Roy Blair’s Cat Heaven USA Tour with his next show in Guadalajara, Mexico on Mar 20.

• 

Roy Blair’s Cat Heaven USA Tour

Source: Roy Blair Shows | Roy Blair

---

Interested in having content featured in an upcoming blog post or issue of The Burgundy Zine? Head on over to the submissions page!

For all other inquiries, please fulfill a contact form.