Folk/Review Ezra Vancil - Island (feat. Cozi)
Ezra Vancil is an American singer/songwriter based in Dallas, Texas. While in the past he has written and recorded in the rock, pop, and experimental genres, a more mature Vancil has now found a sense of permanent belonging and connection within the community of Americana artists. His life experiences shared in song can be serious and contemplative—touching on themes of addiction, depression, and divorce—but Vancil chronicles his escape from darkness with expressions of hope and love of life that are both inspiring and healing.
With “Island,” Ezra Vancil opens a quiet, sun-lit window into the Morning half of his double-album “Morning & Midnight” — a sprawling, decade-long love story told through songs of breaking, mending, and rediscovery. This track captures the stillness that follows emotional turbulence, a gentle exhale after years of holding one’s breath.
Recorded in a small East Texas cabin, “Island” is steeped in the intimacy of its setting. You can almost hear the wooden walls and open air shaping its warmth. The live speaker bleed, the softly breathing room tone, and the organic interplay of musicians give the song the unpolished honesty of a moment caught rather than constructed. Vancil’s acoustic guitar forms the track’s heartbeat — steady, reflective, and tender — while the Nashville players weave subtle, emotive textures around him.
Cozi’s harmonies are the song’s brightest shimmer. Her voice, feather-light yet deeply felt, wraps around Ezra’s with familial closeness, turning the chorus into something both delicate and quietly transcendent. It’s a beautiful embodiment of the song’s theme: connection after chaos, the safe harbor found in another’s presence.
Lyrically, “Island” embraces simplicity, but never settles for cliché. Vancil writes with lived-in clarity, painting a portrait of emotional refuge without overstatement. It’s a song for listeners who crave acoustic-driven storytelling — warm, earnest, and touched by a sense of hard-earned peace.
“Island” stands as one of Vancil’s most moving reflections yet: the sound of someone finally reaching shore.