Elias Hix Releases Debut Single “Mud-Stained Dress”
BY AMY SCHWARTZ
Elias Hix Releases Debut Single “Mud-Stained Dress”
What started as scribbled words on the back of his Spanish homework are now the warm and personal lyrics of Elias Hix’s “Mud-Stained Dress,” an emotive single about falling out of love.
“Mud-Stained Dress” is a new beginning for Elias Hix as it marks his first release as a musical artist. Written, recorded, and produced in his home studio, the single prefaces Hix’s debut album “Thinner,” released on March 6th. If this song is at all indicative of the work that’s to come, I think Hix has larger studios in his future.
As an up-and-coming indie folk artist, Hix stays true to his musical influences, which include established musicians Bon Iver and Gregory Alan Isakov. But that isn’t to say his earthy sound isn’t unique in its own respects: With lyricism fueled by the pain of losing love and sonic elements driven by a nuanced guitar and whispering harmonies, Hix’s perspective is distinctly his own.
The song’s start brings a sense of warmth to its listener — a feeling that’s essential to any music classified as folk. But savor this feeling, because soon the song’s hushed tones turn into lively strums and an urgent voice. After an epiphanic climax, the song ends exactly where it started: Hix’s voice quickly turns soft as it sings, “Paul couldn’t save my memories tonight. My last thought of you and your blood shot eyes.” This soft, tired voice reflects lyrics that describe the feeling of being drained from the pain of forgetting love.
“The most painful part of falling out of love is not the stop of being in love with a person, but it is the forgetting of how it felt to be in love,” states Hix. And if such is true then so is this: “Mud-Stained Dress” is an indie-folk love ballad coated in sorrow.
Stream Elias Hix’s Full album Thinner now
