Each Measure Feature: Miles Away

FEATURE

There are times in each of our lives where the world feels heavy, and the future seems hopeless. It's a scary feeling, and hits hard, but with his new single, Besides Hope, Vancouver artist Miles Away reminds us that it's not the end. Expanding on the themes of his 2020 hit single Bring Me Back, the song is a beautiful mix of melancholy and hope, lamenting the loss of childhood and the pain of modern life, asking us what to do when everything feels like it's falling apart. At the same time, Besides Hope suggests, both lyrically and musically, that in the face of this profound hopelessness, we can survive, with the love and support of the people closest to us.

The cynics among us may think that this is just another love song, that Besides Hope is naively suggesting that love fixes everything, but this couldn't be farther from the truth. Miles Away is under no delusion about the state of the world, or the hopelessness that comes with uncertainty. The message of the song is not that love is the answer, but instead that love helps us through our darkest hours, that, as the song puts it, no one can shoulder the burden alone.

Musically, Besides Hope paints a clear picture of Miles Away's talent as a composer, expertly blending a multitude of instruments, vocal layers, and effects to take us on a journey from despair to hope for the future.

This triumph of a single marks a new era for Miles Away, introducing us to a new sound for the artist, and a new way of operating. Shifting his focus onto story and using only his own vocals in the song, Besides Hope is a major departure from Bring Me Back, which brought on Olivia Ridgely to sing. The choice to lend his own voice to the piece pays off in a big way, it brings a deep authenticity to the piece, and leaves us all with a single question: where will Miles Away take us next?

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