This past May, I featured Florida artist Two Meters on this blog when I reviewed his The Blue Jay EP, a remarkable work that further explored the dark themes of loss and death he first introduced us to on his debut self-titled EP Two Meters. Two Meters is the music project of Fort Lauderdale-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Tyler Costolo. Starting off with powerful, often brutally honest lyrics – which he expresses through incredibly vulnerable, slightly off-kilter vocals that go from droning whispers to spine-tingling wails – he adds layers of intriguing guitar textures, harsh industrial synths, and other lo-fi ambient sounds to create deeply impactful songs.
Now he returns with a mind-blowing new double single “The Nightmare//Bike Ride“, which I’ve chosen as my New Song(s) of the Week. Once again, he delves into dark, introspective subjects, the first of which explores the paralyzing terror we’ve all experienced while having a nightmare, followed by an unsettling sense of relief when we wake up, realizing that awful thing we just went through was only a bad dream.
The song starts off with a somber little guitar riff and Two Meters singing in a hushed monotone “Alone gasping for air. Against the weight of the world.” Suddenly, we’re hit with an barrage of grungy guitar lasting around 25 seconds, then fading back to the somber riff and hypnotic drumbeat as he drones “Crushing down as shadows move. Faceless but with form. A mouth unable to cry out as the darkness comes.” The gnarly guitars return again, only this time accompanied by a distorted wail that conveys the terror of a nightmare. It all calms back down as he sings in just above a whisper “Just as fast life snaps back. The figure gone. The room is back in view. What was real is never clear.”
The second track “Bike Ride” is more experimental, epic and dark, with very gnarly guitar, fuzz-soaked bass and sharp percussive beats. His vocals heavily distorted, Two Meters screams the lyrics describing the sorry state of his bicycle, possibly a metaphor for a life hindered by physical or emotional pain and scars:
There’s a nail in my wheel
My pedals are broken
Left to grind
Into my heel
My helmets collecting dust
The brakes are out
I am
Crossing the street
With a pulsating spacey synth as a backdrop, the music eventually quiets down to a simple strummed guitar as he calmly sings “I make it to the other side, and I look back and wonder what could have been.” Wow, what a brilliant track this is, full of ever-changing sounds, volumes and textures taking us on an emotional roller coaster ride.
Connect with Two Meters: Facebook / Twitter / Instagram
Stream his music: Spotify / Soundcloud
Purchase on Bandcamp / iTunes / Google Play