Laveda – Highway Meditation

Following a massive 25-date U.S. tour in support of their third album Love, Darla, NYC noise rock/shoegaze outfit Laveda return with a cinematic gut-punch of a single/video for “Highway Meditation.”

Built from the chaotic heartbeat of their live chemistry and the kind of gritty intimacy that defines the band’s sound, the track is both explosive and hypnotic – a slow-burn anthem that channels love, danger, and delirium in equal measure.

Originally written as an energetic jam between vocalist/bassist Ali Genevich and guitarist Jake Brooks, “Highway Meditation” morphed into a rather different animal.“When we eventually got burnt out of rehearsing this fast chorus idea, we broke down into a much slower and simplified two-chord section,” explains Brooks. “This is what ended up being the major launching point for the song… With time rehearsing and playing it live, Dan [Carr] brought his own chaotic style of playing that was lacking in the demo.”

The result is quintessential Laveda: a sprawling, noise-drenched fever dream that feels both cinematic and raw – born from the city’s chaos but pulsing with human connection. The video, directed by the band and featuring actors Sofia and Trevor in a frenzied romantic/crime/action Natural Born Killers-inspired storyline, mirrors the song’s emotional push-pull between passion and destruction.

“It took a while for Jake and I to find ‘Highway Meditation”s final form,” Ali adds. “We were itching to get it finished because we both liked it so much. Around that time, I was kinda obsessed with [Oliver Stone’s 1994 romantic crime film] Natural Born Killers – constantly envisioning scenes from the movie while we’d play through the song. It ended upbecoming my analysis of the film.”

“Highway Meditation” extends the raw energy of Love, Darla, Laveda’s most visceral and accomplished record to date. The album finds the band – Ali Genevich (vocals/bass/guitar), Jake Brooks (guitar/vocals), Dan Carr (bass/guitar), and Joe Taurone (drums) – fully immersed in the jagged beauty of their New York backdrop.

From the chaotic noise bursts of “Care” and “Cellphone” to the dreamlike haze of “Tim Burton’s Tower” and “Strawberry,” the record captures a city in flux—restless, melancholic, and electric.

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