Ball of Wax 42 Songs: Eggshells – De Betekenis Van Het Leven

Eggshells‘ take on the meaning of life comes to us in Dutch as “De Betekenis Van Het Leven.” Why Dutch? I don’t know – perhaps it’s a broad nod to masters like Rembrandt or Vermeer or the late century Noise Pop heroics of Bettie Serveert. “De Betekenis Van Het Leven” is glacial space pop, a moody soundtrack to cosmonauts adrift in the universe, complete with the cold beat of electronic drums, floating synth parts and vocals buried under layers of reverb. As with a number of the meaning of life songs on Volume 42, the lyrics are pretty difficult to make out, so not much is illuminated on that front.  The song is spacious, however, and takes its time developing. The entire second half of the song is a sort of extended outro that maintains the same drum beat but switches the chord changes to a contemplative cadence. More really good stuff from relative newcomers Eggshells.