Setting the tone with emotive, hummed vocalizations accompanied by an ethereal guitar and piano soundscape, Naoko Hiranuma opens Sea of Light with poetic prowess and the lyrics, “A promise we couldn’t keep, with someone I used to need, summer’s starting to come around, the ocean’s still a little cold, quiet water, shining still, under blue skies, waiting on the swell, from way offshore, the set rolls in…”
We deeply connect with the vivid and picturesque style of Naoko Hiranuma‘s situational prose and the timelessness of the production. There is an undeniable cinematic allure that manifests, and Sea of Light would be perfect for a scene in a TV show like My Life with the Walter Boys, or a movie such as the recent Oscar-winning, One Battle After Another.
In essence, Sea of Light serves as a reflective indie folk ballad that uses surfing as a metaphor for love, loss and self-realization. It starts with peaceful summer scenes and evolves with the story of a relationship that briefly brought companionship.
It teaches us to accept heartbreak as part of life, comparing emotional scars to surfboard wax – notably providing grip and stability, making us stronger instead of weaker. The writing is metaphorical yet understated, and truly taps into a high emotional quotient which emerges naturally. It’s cathartic and healing at its core.
We love the journey of the song and learn that Naoko Hiranuma is a Japanese artist based in Australia. She has spent half her life overseas and worked as a diving instructor in Japan, the Maldives, and Fiji, and later ran a surf camp in Fiji, which certainly explains her metaphors!
Naturally, we have added Sea of Light to our New Music Spotlight playlist and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the wider discography of Naoko Hiranuma, including Thirty Years, and Mine to Carry.