A Psychedelic Obsession: Michellar’s “Can’t Get You Out Of My Mind”

A hypnotic psychedelic voyage of obsession, desire, and nostalgic sound design.

Michellar (Michelle Bond) is a singer-songwriter and visual artist based in San Francisco who brings out the performances with musical vulnerability and visual sensitivity. She wrote her first song at 15, then took a 40-year break, only returning to music after overcoming her fears and gaining confidence. Michellar is a regular on the open mic circuit in San Francisco. "Can't Get You Out Of My Mind" Bembe Michellar immerses the listener in a hypnotic space of obsession and yearning, with lush psychedelic soundscapes and emotionally direct lyrics.

“Can’t Get You Out Of My Mind” - Michellar turns the unimaginative thoughts into a blend of dreamy melodies and emotional storytelling.

Michellar's vocals provide yet another element of weakness, leaving the emotional agonies of the words to stay in the limelight. There is a filmic feel to the song, which draws one into a naively intimate situation; it is as if one is being pulled into the songwriter's mind.

Instead of Cupid's arrow falling, Michellar tackles the dark side of desire, wandering mind (restless, uncontrolled thoughts), allowing the song's psychological center to take shape.

The production is one of the primary reasons why the track is so compelling. Drawing from the "sonic realms" of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and The Doors, the music blends "the swirling melodies, atmospherics and retro-psychedelia" of their sound with "a slick modern sheen" that makes the song seem "familiar without feeling like a pastiche". The song is also successful because of its flaws and emotional frankness. It doesn't try to tidy up the sentence of feeling the song investigates, rather leaving it open as a question, a desire, an obsession. As the first taste of Michellar's future psychedelia-based album, 'Can't Get You Out Of My Mind' is a promising and unquestioning introduction to Michellar's emerging creative universe.