Move over Sufjan Stevens, Wild Pink’s John Ross might finally be the indie artist to give us music dedicated to each of the 50 states. Ok, that’s a stretch, but following the recently released track with Samia entitled “Ohio,” Ross and Wild Pink are back with “Florida.” Both are follow-ups to Wild Pink’s excellent A Billion Little Lights, which came out in February.
On “Florida,” the Ross-led Brooklyn trio play on the juxtaposition of Florida’s stigma as the home of shady suspects, but also with its beauty as the uniquely beautiful home of the Everglades. It’s a glistening track with pedal steel, acoustic strums, lovely keys, and a driving thump that flashes the new-age folk that the band has totally nailed. Ross shared some words in a statement on the track:
“Florida” is a love letter to the state I grew up in,” says Ross. “It has a bad reputation, which is well deserved, but I think it’s also a misunderstood state. It’s got it’s own thing going on if you look hard enough and the natural beauty there is unreal. Florida is a rewarding place if you spend the time finding its charm. I grew up listening to a lot of Florida bands like I Hate Myself and Shai Hulud, which was really formative for me early on.”
“This was the first song I wrote after a long musical hiatus during the lockdown. I had just gotten an upright piano for free on Facebook Marketplace and the piano loop was the first thing I wrote on it. “Florida” puts a period at the end of the A Billion Little Lights sentence, in my mind.”
Listen to “Florida” above.
