We recently featured Ordinary // Colours for the release of his profound single Pacific Division, so when we heard that the rising artist from Toronto had just released the brand new, In Frustration, we couldn’t’ wait to experience it.
Establishing the mood with intricate drums and percussion with a luscious and immersive guitar melody, Ordinary // Colours opens In Frustration with charm and the observational lyrics, “Everyone’s trying to speak in empty spaces, echoing up the walls…”
The opus expands into the hybrid acoustic-folk meets indie-pop energy that we have come to love from Ordinary // Colours, as he shares his perspective, wisdom and poetic prowess.
We learn that In Frustration continues from the perspective of the narrator introduced in Pacific Division (which detailed the dissatisfaction they felt over their current situation in life). Ordinary // Colours mentions Sufjan Stevens and Elliott Smith as two reference points for his sound, although there is no doubt that multi-disciplinary artist Justin Chee is creating a universe of his own.
Justin confesses that “the narrator recounts a workplace that is rife with conflict, with colleagues who are always attempting to make themselves heard above one another.”
He continues with depth, “To avoid dealing with these situations, the narrator decides to stay withdrawn from others but as time goes on, finds themselves increasingly troubled at having to hide their true emotions.”
We appreciate the early ’00s baroque pop influences such as choirs, harps and brass which dimensionalise the piece, which has a highly refined energy. His purpose with the song is to inspire people to be more “forthright and truthful”, and “consequently lead to better mindfulness.”
We love what Ordinary // Colours is sharing, and his thought-provoking message, fused with his authenticity. We have added In Frustration to our New Music Spotlight playlist, whilst we continue to stream Pacific Division!