New York, NY (Top40 Charts) With the release of "Promised Land," the third single from the forthcoming nine-song collection Eureka Springs (due out March 18 on Long Jump Records), Jacksonville, Florida-based recording artist Cory Driscoll has added another element to his latest conceptual sonic collage. Unspooled into three parts, "Promised Land" is about wanting to be wanted rather than chasing love.
"I want to be chosen. I don't want to force your hand," Driscoll sings on the track's opening salvo, before adding, "I want to know what it is you want / And if it's not me, well, I'll just as soon be gone," as a lush ensemble of drums, piano, and bright electric guitar arpeggios fall in behind him. As the band lays a strong foundation, reinforcing the mood with atmospheric horns, Driscoll finds his lyrical footing, waxing about love requite over an Elvis Costello-esque indie-power-pop soundscape.
Just as Driscoll seems to reach peak conviction, "Promised Land" grinds to halt and then idles over acoustic guitar strums and a contemplative keyboard motif with Driscoll seeking to offer clarity, "I don't care if you don't share all your feelings with me…but I hope you let me know the moment you let go / I hope you let me know."
The medley's uptempo finale finds the band at its most ragged, thrashing away as Driscoll seems to find a eureka moment in his original mantra: "Fallin', I don't wanna fall in / If I'm to be your man / Chosen, I want to be chosen / Like the Promised Land."
"[The song] plays with engendered concepts surrounding romantic pursuit summarizing the ideal relationship as one both parties choose." Driscoll says of "Promised Land." The track appears early in the song cycle of Eureka Springs, which tells the story of a father's journey through America's heartland in search of redemption and understanding. Driscoll wrote the majority of the songs for the record in the town of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, a locale he found rife with metaphor, given the emotional journey he was undertaking at the time.
Driscoll wrote "Promised Land" with longtime collaborator and guitarist Sam Lloyd, one of nine musicians spread across the country who contributed to Eureka Springs. "We've dialed in our respective expertise," Driscoll says of his relationship with Lloyd, which spans several musical projects over more than a dozen years, including Driscoll's 2018 EP, Tropical Depression. "And now sending him something and hearing what he sends back is like second nature. I'm privileged to be able to trust so much, but I'm grateful for it."
