By Lee Anderson
Born in New York, singer-songwriter Jules Walcott has experimented with just about every musical genre imaginable, even opera, even classical music. She once fronted a Long Island-based hard rock outfit. Considering this, it’s no wonder that Walcott’s newest single, “Déjà Vu,” is hard to pin down. She calls it “dark alternative pop.” We’ll go with that.
The song begins with a pounding piano line backed by soft strings. A warbled electronic voice struggles to be heard. That’s when Walcott’s voice comes in: “I was happy by myself,” she sings. “Single in my life. / You looked at me and told me that / You were single just the same…”
It’s easy to see where this is going.
“I can’t believe I fell in love / To be single again.” Walcott’s voice sounds wounded but never weepy. This is where the déjà vu comes in. The song is about the futility felt when trying to find your soulmate. Just when you think you’ve left the single life behind you for good—poof!—here it is again. Welcome back. Thought you were going somewhere?
In the end, however, it’s always for the best. “Your time’s up, time’s up / And now I’ve made my mind up.” She is obviously going to be better off as most women are when shedding losers who lie. It’s just never easy or fun getting blindsided.
“Déjà Vu” is a song for female empowerment, which somehow manages to avoid self-pity or soap box sermonizing. The track also remembers to be melodic and memorable while remaining somewhat stripped down, making each contributing part of the song all the stronger. Apart from Walcott’s robust voice is a punctuating bass and “take THAT” finger-snaps.
It’s a song about a woman anguished and shaken, but undeniably capable of recovery. Love just sucks. Thank goodness. After all, it’s where some of the best music comes from…
To hear the single “Déjà Vu” by Jules Walcott, click the image below:
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