by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
A few years back Cailtin Pasko released her debut album, Glass Period, a gentle and patient album that reflected on grief with bare bones beauty. Three years later Pasko returns with Greenhouse, due out August 28th via Whatever’s Clever (Ben Seretan, Office Culture, Ian Wayne), is based around the dissolution of relationships, written during a time that Pasko was getting out of an emotionally abusive relationship herself. It’s a heavy look into finding yourself for yourself, away from outside relations. Led by Pasko’s piano and her gorgeous voice, the songs are weighted with emotion and built on airy atmosphere’s where the quiet builds as much emphasis as the songs themselves.
“To The Leaves” is the record’s second single, an emotionally heartbreaking song that looks back in shock at a relationship that feel apart at its seems, feeling claustrophobic, causing Pasko to not recognize herself in those moments. As she longs to be free, the piano plinks with sustained progressions, quietly building to something grand (yet minimal), returning to the root but bolstering Pasko’s strength to move forward, reflect, and re-develop with a healthy mind.
Speaking about the song, Pasko shared:
"To The Leaves" is the last song I wrote for the album, and it arrived fully formed. I sat down at my piano with the intention of writing it, and it felt almost like I had to chase it as it came out. It's about Relationship PTSD and wanting so badly to be freed from the past -- from triggers. It's about accepting that some wounds will take longer to heal, and that personal transformation is ongoing and unconditional love for yourself is paramount. The lyrics were inspired by my summer 2019 obsession with the flying river above the Amazon, as well as my love for peaches.