There are acres of green forest stretching out behind my home, and most of the time it feels like each inch is bursting with the lush, summer-fed promises of life. Until a day like today rolls in, accompanied by persistent, continuously hovering rain showers and a sense of overarching melancholy. The scenery’s now shifted to a shaded, hazy gray with layers of murky streaks. Even plants in full bloom resemble humanity, seeming to sag their metaphorically leafy shoulders under the impact of the quieted ambiance. The contrast makes me think of how a burdened state of mind or being can still exist or overtake even the shining and most optimistic of moments.
Multi-genre indie artist Giovanna provides an on-point example of this clash via her poignant sense of creativity. The Orange County-based musician just released a new single called “Poppy Fields,” which immediately brings to mind… color. Vibrancy. Nature as nature should be. But beneath a cinematically toned, pop-leaning, alt-rock surface of instrumentation, nothing is routine within the singer-songwriter’s lyrical perspective. In fact, these “Poppy Fields” serve as a titled facade for Giovanna, trying to hold onto a positive promise amidst a stormy sea of sinking heartbreak.
The truth within this song’s soul surrounds a relationship’s unraveling. Giovanna desperately visualizes “the poppy fields and delicate times” of the briefly bright moments this connection has created. She helps support alibis and tries to see the best in this other person because she clearly cares for them. But all the musician gets in return are lies, deception, and promises to change that never come. Listening to her voice’s hope progressively fade as “Poppy Fields” elapses is like gaining access to a deeply painful diary page.
The ultimate mic drop of a knockout blow in this song (at least for me) comes at the very end. After a hailing clash of lyrically internal conflict, the listener is brought to this gut punch of a final, emotionally brutal resolution:
Watching my light die
In the LA sky
Said I would feel your love
Maybe this time
Given that “Poppy Fields” is about “the complicated act of letting go of
memories after heartbreak,” this feels like Giovanna at the very bottom of a breakup. Despite trying not to lose her grip, each moment has been a prequel to how she fell here in the first place. “Poppy Fields” is that struggle to let go despite trying everything to keep a caring connection alive, before having to sighingly submit to dreaded acceptance. Vocally, Giovanna hits that “maybe this time” with what I can best describe as an evocative knife point. One of the best (and most crushing) song ends I’ve heard in a long time.
With an approach reminiscent of the likes of Lydia Loveless, Phoebe Bridgers, Katie Crutchfield of Waxahatchee, and even a touch of Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” in the chorus, Giovanna has created a fitting ode to the harsh realities of how one-sided love can form on “Poppy Fields.” It may not feel like it in the moment. You might try to push away the possibility, hold on to the positive places, and excuse away the negatives growing like a day’s rainstorm. But eventually, the hollowed-out memories of better times are all that remain.
Ultimately, the best (and most difficult) thing to do is to be free of the weight dragging down your shoulders. Break it off, shake the formationally murky haze of gray, and slowly work on your recovery. I enjoyed that as part of the rollout for “Poppy Fields,” Giovanna was sending people poppy seeds to plant their own flowers. Because those are what last. Emotional attachments may fade away on the vine in time, but the flowers always come back. You might initially wither, too, but the lesson is in learning how to return. Hopefully, stronger and brighter than ever before. At peace in the poppies.
Check out the song below! You can also find it on various streaming platforms (as well as Giovanna’s excellent Substack) at the link here!
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