Single: Stars Reappear by Willie Campbell
Stars Reappear is the most recent single release from Scottish singer-songwriter Willie Campbell, based on the Isle of Lewis. Willie has an impressive amount of experience in the music industry, including co-fronting guitar-pop band Astrid at the end of the 90s and joining Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody in co-founding indie collective, Reindeer Section, which included various other well-established artists. He released a Gaelic album, ‘Dalma’ in 2014, before participating in The Open Day Rotation.
More recently however, he returned as a solo artist, with his 2020 album Nothing’s Going to Bring Me Down. That album is a selection of soft indie rock (in English), with an uplifting overall sound and introspective lyrics (for example “I’m standing on this rock as it turns, thinking how small we are in the universe” in the song Miracles of Love, Miracles of Pain).
Stars Reappear continues his uplifting sound and message, but intensifies it ten-fold, with a throwback sound to 10’s rock that has an element of pleasant nostalgia for millennials. Words that first spring to mind to describe this song are “bright”, “shimmering” and “cheering” – much like stars themselves. It somehow manages to sound simultaneously summery and slightly festive. The track kicks off with a catchy, distorted guitar riff, before launching swiftly into a full band arrangement with an energetic drum part. At first, I thought that it could have been an improvement to ease the listener in more slowly to the full arrangement, but upon listening to it more, I’m glad it gets into full swing early on. Launching straight in like this gives the track an instant kick and compliments the happy-sounding chords and melody. No delayed gratification needed.
There are some little intermissions with a twinkly layered synth and piano riff, that are the sonic equivalent of shimmering stars, whilst also adding catchiness and gluing the track together. This contrasts satisfyingly with the raw, heavy sound of the drums and guitars. The arrangement is a little sparser in the first half of the second verse, with a quirky, 80s style synth, that provides variety in the song’s texture whilst again conjuring a star-like image in the mind’s eye. All these elements of the arrangement combine in complimenting rhythms and perfect harmony to create multiple hooks together, all in the one song.
Willie’s vocals are warm and mellow, with a Scottish twang, and his delivery is sincere, sounding as if he is smiling as he sings. The song’s musical elements are the perfect companion to the lyrics, which describe overcoming difficult times to reach an uplifting ending; for example, “A misguided search for something that I lost but I never had/I cried alone but then I’d always laugh”. The chorus lyrics are touching: “And the stars reappear like a friend from old times/They glitter and guide me home”. The climax of the song comes at the bridge: “I forget what trouble is/You brought me out of love and ruins/If I could do it all again…I wouldn’t risk changing a thing”. His voice glides into a smooth, bright falsetto at the end of this line, shining at this jubilant, hopeful moment. Though not always easy, having no regrets is something we all aspire to, and listening to this track evokes that feeling.
In a nutshell, I would give this track 5 shining stars! I enjoy it more and more with each play. Well written, seamlessly arranged and enthusiastically performed, it all comes together as a twinkling beacon of hope and positivity. If I’m feeling down, it encourages me to ‘look on the bright side’ – towards the stars. This uplifting song acts to reassure us that, though nights may be dark, the stars will always reappear.
