Loving someone intensely is both exhilarating and scary as hell and, when you throw in a tendency towards anxiety and depression, the stakes can feel even higher. Which is what “So Few Words (love letter),” the new single — available now — by Toronto-based indie folk-pop artist Francesca Panetta is all about: that smudgy blurred line between fear and excitement.
Written consciously outside of the usual verse-chorus-verse pop structure, “So Few Words” is a shimmery, cascading happy-melancholy journey through the feelings of tumultuous early infatuation. “The way you look at me/ When your eyes say you want me/ Could nearly give me a heart attack,” Panetta sings.
The song came about in 2021 as Panetta, struggling with the anxiety of a new love, got lost in a chord progression on her guitar. “I often use songwriting as a form of self-reflection,” she said. “As someone who suffers a lot with my mental health, new experiences can be difficult. Depression, anxiety, and ADHD often cloud my judgment – especially when it comes to romantic attachments. I wrote this song during a new romantic experience, so you can imagine the emotional jungle that consumed my mind.”
Still, the lack of conventional structure to the song ended up helping organize, and give order, to Panetta’s emotions. “To be honest, a lot of my songs have a tendency to fall into this category,” she said. “I tried to break out of it at first, for the sake of ‘fitting in,’ however I soon realized that sometimes too much structure can take away from all that a songwriter is trying to convey. So now, when I sit down to write a song, I try my best to let the process flow as naturally and authentically as possible.”
Each song that Francesca Panetta writes is laced with unapologetic authenticity. Leveraging self-reflection in her songwriting, the Toronto-born musician translates her own personal experiences into compelling lyrics that everyone can find comfort in. On her debut EP, When the Sunshine Rains, Francesca aligned nostalgic moments with sweet melodies and passion. After almost a year of self-promoting her EP, Francesca is now releasing her new single. While taking a slightly more modern musical approach, her folk/Americana roots remain evident.
