The Most Underrated Song of the Year

The title got y'all, didn't it! I am quite sure '2021 Highlight Review: Susan Darvishi - New Salvation' would not get just as many views as this title did. Sure, this is a little cheap, but this song truly deserves a whole lot more love than it has gotten.

Susan Darvishi has had a fantastic year. Her move from New York City to the San Francisco Bay Area has spawned one of the year's best albums in 14th and 4th. Lead single Fingers Crossed received over 25,000 views, while her musical quality has been sky high. However, it is from b-side New Salvation that she scores her peak moment. The song has a measly 1,656 views from a live performance, and less than 100 from the studio version(s). This is a shame, as New Salvation outdoes many tracks this year.

Darvishi is a strong lyricist. Fingers Crossed and Polaroid all thrived on strong storytelling. New Salvation is not as lyrically as strong as them, but it is great in its own right. The song is about her looking for hope in new places after making a consequential choice. Given her major move across the United States, it does not take a genius to guess what the change is. Playful and clever analogies set up the story, with her deftly proclaiming "if this is a game will they give me three lives", along with the river analogy at the song's heart.

New Salvation is pure funk-EDM. While this might suggest a clunky and large landscape, New Salvation is as nimble as they get, with no fat on its bones. The verses follow a simple build, along with cascading instrumentation. While the melody here is very simple, Darvishi's charismatic vocal performance makes it worth waiting. The building synths in the pre-chorus, in particular, are a highlight.

However, if it was just the verses that made the song, a high 8 would be expected. New Salvation has an incredible, amazing, and massive chorus. There is so much to unpack here, where do I even start? The production is immaculate yet simple. A simple, pounding, rhythmic bass creates a funky, danceable atmosphere. It feels so loose but just controlled enough to make it deliberate. The snapping and clapping percussion feels so central yet eclectic. All of this is accompanied by just enough synths to bridge the gap. This nimble production makes a great foundation to let loose with a perfectly tuned melody.

Susan Darvishi commands the track with her deft vocal performance. She has previously shown with songs like Polaroid that she can make emotions felt through upbeat instrumentation. This is exactly what she does here. The melody loops up when you expect it to go down, and vice versa. At the same time, it feels natural, like it should go nowhere else. Rarely do you ever see such a tightly crafted yet loose dance-pop track.

Then, just when you'd expect the song to drop into the verses, we get an instrumental post-chorus, giving us the promised jarring funk. This is how you subvert expectations, you give something different, while also giving what was promised. The clanging EDM here is a pure chef's kiss. It maintains the quick pace of the rest of the song while providing enough contrast to surprise.

If I have one criticism of New Salvation, it would be the utterly perplexing climax. It is quite clear that the audio for the final chorus is simply a ctrl+c crtrl+v of previously used audio, or at the very least, lacks that sense of finality. I presume this is due to the budget limits of the track, and it is fixed in the live performance, where Darvishi's ad-libs provide that sense of finality.

Rarely do we ever get a song so perfectly crafted for its genre as New Salvation, with its success unfortunately inverse to its quality. Darvishi performs with a sense of emotion and regret, making each and every moment build with tension. Listen to the song now, try to stop moving and grooving!

Rating: 9.25/10

Image Source: YouTube (Susan Darvishi 14th and 4th playlist)