Fabúla’s With His Eyes Closed is a transcendent musical experience, a masterful blend of poetic storytelling and intricately woven soundscapes. The rising Icelandic artist, who has built her reputation on the seamless marriage of words and melody, has created an opus that feels like it was plucked from the emotional core of humanity itself. It’s not merely a song; it’s a cinematic journey, a tapestry of sound and sentiment that lingers in the mind long after the last note fades.
The track opens with an acoustic guitar line that feels both intimate and expansive, like the first light of dawn spilling over a quiet landscape. Birkir Rafn Gíslason’s playing is exquisite, grounding the song with a warmth that invites us in. As layers of sound begin to unfold, the music gains a sense of dimension, subtly weaving in textures that enrich without overwhelming. Each element feels meticulously placed yet organic, as though the song were discovering itself in real time.
Fabúla’s voice is the beating heart of the composition. Her timbre, steeped in soul and tinged with a blues-like melancholy, conveys a depth of feeling that words alone could never achieve. There’s an unguarded honesty in her delivery, a storytelling quality that brings the protagonist’s inner turmoil vividly to life. She captures the essence of longing, the push and pull of safety versus the unknown, with a poignancy that feels achingly real. The metaphors in her lyrics dance between the abstract and the concrete, painting a picture that is as vivid as it is open to interpretation. Lines about dreaming of a life that “shakes him up” and “turns him on” resonate universally, speaking to the latent adventurer within us all.
The song’s structure is a marvel of craftsmanship. Ethereal switch-ups punctuate the arrangement, lifting the listener into realms of near otherworldly beauty. These moments feel like breaths of air, cinematic pauses that open vast emotional vistas. It’s easy to imagine this track as the backbone of a Hollywood film’s climactic scene, a montage of self-discovery, a quiet revelation, or the resolve to leap into the unknown.
One of the song’s most captivating features is its sound design, particularly the trumpet interludes. These moments are not merely ornamental; they are narrative devices in their own right. The trumpet’s voice is haunting yet hopeful, like a call from a distant place, beckoning the listener forward. It adds a layer of sophistication and emotion that elevates the song into the realm of the sublime.
Fabúla is, without question, a storyteller in song. She inhabits her characters fully, drawing listeners into the lives and struggles she depicts. With His Eyes Closed is a poignant reflection on the human condition, a meditation on the conflict between what is and what could be. It’s a piece that encourages introspection, inviting us to consider the routines we cling to and the dreams we dare not chase.
Recorded near Reykjavik with an international creative flair, the song and its accompanying visuals exemplify Fabúla’s ability to transcend geographical and cultural boundaries. Her collaboration with La tit fanfare and the spontaneous creation of a stunning music video add layers of richness to the project, further cementing her status as an artist whose work is as multidimensional as it is deeply human.
In With His Eyes Closed, Fabúla has given us more than a song; she has gifted us a moment, a space to pause, reflect, and perhaps, like her protagonist, dream of a life that might one day set us free. We have added With His Eyes Closed to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TRIPPY and TIMELESS playlists, whilst we continue to stream the wider discography of Fabúla, including Diamond Boy and Uphill!