New York-based singer-songwriter, Gavriel (also known as Phillip Reichmann) captures the moment of his first panic attack in his latest single “hold me together”. As an ode to his wife, the song comes across as a sincere thank you for being the one to help him through.
There is a natural tenderness that comes through the opening verse and chorus. He keeps it simple with just his voice and a fingerpicked guitar as he describes the initial sensations that he remembers from his experience. “And, oh, you came to rescue me from falling directly on the floor” he sings, “All that is left of me is in pieces I can’t understand no more”.
Though there is a clear sadness in the song’s lyrics, it doesn’t allow itself to get bogged down the by the weight of it all. it feels light and airy, choosing to focus instead on the moments after the storm has passed. There’s plenty of hope as he sings through the chorus “Won’t last forever / Soon I’ll be back on my feet again / and I’ll remember how you kept me from falling apart.”
As the song naturally swells with the introduction of a backbeat, piano, and stacked backing harmonies, and ultimately ends on a hopeful march as the song slowly fades into the distance. In the conscious choice of allowing the song to process out and away, it feels like Gavriel is choosing to carry that part of the experience with him – not the baggage of the sunken feeling of the panic attack, but the love and support he felt on the other side.
“hold me together” is available now on major streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Pandora, Deezer, TIDAL, and Qobuz, and can be found on the Alchemical Records Multigenre Mixture playlist on Spotify.
Charlie Maybee is a dancer, musician, educator, and writer based in Charleston, South Carolina who currently teaches with the Dance Program at the College of Charleston. His primary work as an artist is with his performing collective, Polymath Performance Project, through which he makes interdisciplinary performance art that centers tap dance as the primary medium of expression and research. He also currently plays rhythm guitar for the Charleston-based punk band, Anergy, and releases music as a solo artist under the name Nox Eterna.
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