“Spider Veins,” the cinematic ballad of aging, anxiety, and defiance
Operating as First Robin, singer-songwriter Alexandra Sullivan makes a compelling return to music after a multi-year hiatus, bringing newfound clarity and maturity to the Toronto scene. An undeniable storyteller, First Robin’s style blends indie, folk, and subtle pop with whimsical, wise songwriting that translates hyper-specific feelings into universal truths. Her debut single, “Spider Veins,” is a cinematic, piano-driven ballad—produced by Joel Schwartz—that examines existential themes of identity and aging, weaving a modern indie-folk sound with distinct, raw vocals reminiscent of powerful early 2000s female-driven anthems.
Review
“Spider Veins” is an intensely resonant, deeply modern ballad that perfectly captures the unique claustrophobia of current-day anxiety. The track immediately sets up a fierce tension between the deafening noise of the outside world—spanning the paralyzing “TV with the war on” to corrosive online fights with the “worst person I’ve never met”—and the frustrating, physical limitations of the self.
The central image—the eponymous “spider veins / Keep crawling up my legs”—hits with gut-wrenching honesty. This is a potent, physical stand-in for the creeping panic of getting older and the desperate need to feel grounded in a chaotic life (“I don’t know if I feel safe here anymore”).
Produced by Joel Schwartz, the track’s modern indie-folk sound is underpinned by raw, distinctive vocals reminiscent of early 2000s female-driven anthems, perfectly supporting the song’s cynical, yet defiant conclusion: the realization that while “This wasted youth is really getting old,” the simple act of breathing is, somehow, still “pretty bold.”
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