Exclusive Track Premiere: ‘Wes Come Back,’ Rodes Rollins

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARK PEACED.

Nostalgia tends to manifest differently for each of us, as memories are often intimate and inherently unique. But there are certain common experiences and characters that prevail, such as an adult wistfully recalling their adolescence and a first love. In the case of bicoastal singer-songwriter Rodes Rollins’ latest track, “Wes Come Back,” which premieres below, that narrative is the guiding force. The young love in question’s name is Wes, and according to Rollins, it was “an intense first love at that.”

“Lyrics generally don’t come first for me, but for this song they did,” recalls Rollins. “That tends to happen when I write about Wes. For a long time during our adolescent years, our lives were very much intertwined.” The music’s ephemeral, smoky quality combined with the tranquility of Rollins’ voice recalls earlier forms of storytelling. “I wanted this song to feel like a modern take on a spaghetti western, cowboy tune,” Rollins continues. “Something that might have been sung at a campfire in the desert of New Mexico many years ago.”

The content of this track speaks to the entirety of Rollins’ forthcoming debut EP, Young Adult (Allen Road), which is due out later this month. “All of the songs are about the formative experiences from my youth,” she says. “They’re all snippets of me from the past, told by a future me.” This focus is a result of how accessible these feelings remain for Rollins: “It was one of those songs that rolled off the tongue for me. There’s a lot of raw and real material … when I write about him, I feel like I’m genuinely telling a story. And I have a lot to say.”

YOUNG ADULT (ALLEN ROAD) WILL BE RELEASED FEBRUARY 17, 2017. FOR MORE ON ROLLINS, VISIT HER WEBSITE.