In the opening lines of her new single, “Cosmic Flower,” Nashville-based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Lydia Luce effortlessly demonstrates her ability to paint immersive, technicolor scenes with her music, singing, “Today the trees are weightless and I am close behind / No strings fly between me and the sky.” Luce wrote the song while sitting on a literal cliff on Orcas Island while participating in an artist residence just off the coast of Washington state. “Cosmic Flower” offers a series of similes, drawing a parallel between nature and love. It folds Luce's passion and inspiration for the vastness of nature with those same feelings in her relationship. Luce recalls, “My partner was on tour, and I was traveling. We had been apart for about a month and wouldn’t see each other for a while. In the past, I might have felt insecurities about our distance, but the strength of our relationship has shown me that we can provide each other space and always come back to one another.” In the end, “Cosmic Flower” is a song about longing, about missing someone. “After Covid, everybody knows what that feels like," Luce says. Her parting lyrics leave a lasting sense of hope, wrapped in a beautiful string arrangement. “I know that I’m always going to find my way to you.”
Today, Holler premiered “Cosmic Flower,” writing, “the lush orchestration gently building as it washes over you and pulls you under its spell. It’s profoundly beautiful.” On June 24, Luce is set to release Garden Songs, a five-song EP sown from her time spent reconnecting with songwriting on Orcas Island. Fans can listen to “Cosmic Flower” here, check out Luce’s previously-released Garden Songs track “Yellow Dawn” here, and pre-save or pre-order Garden Songs now at this link.
More About Garden Songs: Writing in such a picturesque setting helped Luce focus her attention on the world around her—quite literally in the case of the EP's first song, "Matter of Time." The summer before Luce landed on Orcas Island, the northwest suffered two brutal heat waves, and the extreme weather killed dozens. It got Luce thinking about the cognitive dissonance of wanting to be present in this remarkable place while grappling with how the same area was deadly to so many during a bout of extreme weather. For a woman who grew up by the ocean, the mountainous water vistas reminded her of her smallness. It also helped to shrink her anxieties and ego down to a manageable enough size to not get in the way of simply writing a song.
Luce turned to her impending wedding for "Vow," which is the tale of the next step in a relationship that had been turbulent. The song lands on a moment of looking forward, Luce explains, to "what we've built together and all of our hard work in our relationship and also getting to be present and enjoy where we're at." Another love is at the heart of "Air Castle"—that of Luce's great grandparents. Her father shared a book of their love letters, written between 1909 and 1920, while he was in California and she was in Georgia. The song captures how important it can be to feel like someone is in your corner, seeing the best of you and rooting for your triumph.
The EP ends with the beautiful "Yellow Dawn," summing up the feeling that propelled the writing and creation of Garden Songs. Persistence, in love and living, is a choice Luce continues to make, and the fruits of her carrying-on are on full display through this gorgeous musical window into her life.
Garden Songs Tracklist:
Matter of Time
Vow
Air Castle
Cosmic Flower
Yellow Dawn
Catch Lydia Luce On Tour:
April 13 - Nashville, TN - City Winery: Lockeland Strings with MORGXN, Louis Prince, Josh Gilligan
April 24 - Los Angeles, CA - Gold Diggers
May 21 - Nashville, TN - The Blue Room: Lockeland Strings with Katy Kirby, Devon Gilfillian and Liza Anne
June 9 Nashville, TN - Jaans House: Lockeland Strings with Nicki Bluhm, Volunteer Department, and more
June 26 - North Haven Island, ME - CrabTree Session
June 30 - Plymouth, MA - The Spire
July 1 - Cape Cod, MA - Cultural Arts Center
July 2 - Portsmouth, NH - Music Hall
July 6 - Bristol, CT - Acousticool
