This song, “Shelter” by Ben Hazlewood, is a moody alternative pop song all about the regret you feel when you look back and realize that you lost the person you should’ve protected. Hindsight can be clarifying, but it can also be devastating, and Ben Hazlewood punches you right in the gut with that idea by sharing how it feels when it’s too late to go back and change your mind. With lyrics like “no time for sleep, tell me you’re coming too” and “hang tight, vultures are circling,” he creates a sense of urgency and worry, and then chaos as well with lines like “seesaw, up and then down again.” You took this person for granted, you didn’t realize how much you cared for them until they were already gone. Hazelwood puts it simply and poignantly, “I wanted to be your shelter,” but the time to be that person’s shelter has already passed.
“Shelter” is a song that uses a mixture of delicate piano and strong instrumentation to create a contradictory and yet compelling feeling of intimacy and ominousness. The song starts slowly, drawing you in with a moody atmosphere, before breaking into a sharply dark melody. The steady and heavy percussion keeps the beat and keeps the tension rising, even as Ben Hazlewood’s vocals are layered in for the first verse. Despite the song being on the longer side, at four minutes, you’re left wanting to listen to it again almost immediately. Overall, sweeping instrumentals, raw lyrics, and evocative harmonies make the listener feel that sense of vulnerability and longing while also that fear and that pain that you’ll never once again have what you’re searching for.
Ben Hazlewood is a brilliant pop artist who’s made a name for himself all throughout his journey from New Zealand, to London, to Australia, where he now calls home. Though he was first the frontman of a rock band back in London, he broke out on his own and has been entrancing listeners with his voice alone. Having been raised on powerful artists like Jim Morrison, Stevie Nicks, David Bowie, and Janis Joplin, he’s embraced that star quality that’s hard to find in this day and age. His debut album, Bloodline, released in 2020, was the culmination of years of hard work and passion for music, and since then he’s released several new songs, with “Shelter” being the latest. Use the links below to listen to more of his music!
Written By Morgan Fischer
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