Picture this: you’re relaxing at the beachside, drink in hand, under the blazing summer sun. All the while, despite the paradise around you, you’re at a loss for who you really are. Your mind is racing as you try to figure it all out. Introducing “New Light”, the tropical-esque indie pop song by Varas.
Lush synths and smooth beats flow effortlessly underneath the vocals, but don’t be fooled– this chill indie tune sounds like being carried away on an oceanic wave, but it lyrically chronicles the struggle of figuring out who you really are– along with the triumphs of discovery through it all.
This song progresses much like the passing of time during a new endeavor: tentative at first, revealing itself along the way, and finally flourishing in all its boppy glory. It’s a perfect metaphor for personal growth and inner discovery: it’s terrifying, but we end up growing into ourselves through that pain and worry. At a certain point, we have to let our expectations go, and instead go with the flow. “I change each year and each day. It doesn’t matter if I’ve convinced myself into a certain direction,” writes Varas. “All it takes is romances, friendships, losing and getting jobs, letting go of dreams or creating new ones to lose the sense of it. It’s dumb. But don’t get me wrong, it’s a positive and vital ability.”
As it evolves, it turns into a song with an infectious beat and flow as smooth as the breeze. Its instrumentation is simple, yet infinitely effective in creating a soundscape that’s both nostalgic and new at the same time. It’s full of contradictions: the fear of growing, the happiness of growth, the melancholy of the lyrics, the poppiness of the beat. But that’s just life, isn’t it? When all is said and done, maybe that’s how Varas sees it himself.
Benjamin Muñoz Varas is a 25-year-old producer and singer/songwriter that has found his passion in taking sounds from multiple influences and turning it into something new. He began to play guitar at age 12 after hearing Led Zeppelin for the first time. At 15, after moving to Gothenburg, Sweden, he started producing hip-hop beats. He eventually started to combine his love of producing with his love of guitar. In 2019, he released his debut single “Comfy” which featured Raghd, followed by his 2020 EP “Set One”. Varas is set to release his second highly anticipated EP in the spring of 2023.
Written by Jess Ward