Ball of Wax 63 Songs: Bike Monday – “The Snow”

Do you believe in love at first sight? Do you believe in love at first sight when it comes to a song? I do.

Listeners of vinyl records are aware that certain songs will grab you simply by the way their grooves appear on the platter. You can read the tonal differences within a track by the texture of the vinyl. There are songs that make your heart flutter when you turn the record against the light and see the tone shifting from soft to loud and back again; songs that make you swoon where you can sense the pulse and beat of the cut by the shimmer from the record’s surface.

You can, of course, read digital tracks in a similar manner on many modern music applications. Many songs do not distinguish themselves from others when viewing them. A common form is to have the soundwave peak early and then maintain more or less a long plateau until a quick fade at the end. Some, however, will make you gasp when you see their form on a screen for the first time.

When I saw the visual representation of Bike Monday’s contribution to Ball of Wax 63, “The Snow,” I issued forth a gleeful utterance and then a loving sigh. The waveform looked like a beautiful medieval castle blanketed in snow. I was excited to click play to hear this track and how Bike Monday crafted their song to build the form before me. The song opens with crystalline notes repeated from a synthesizer establishing a cool, dreamlike tone for the piece. A wall of fuzzy arpeggios drift in establishing a new layer atop the first. More synth washes into the soundscape and delicately delivered vocals fall in place. Drifting across the piece, tones and melodies stack, disappear. A coherent structure is formed with a strong foundation, transitional ramparts, and rising turrets.

Bike Monday has rewarded my initial reaction. I love “The Snow” even more than I did on first sight after listening to it.