“Fade Into You” by Mazzy Star made the music scene of 1993 just a bit more darkly romantic. Slow, dreamy and seductive, the band’s music was a surprise success and influenced many imitators. However, since mystery was always a big part of the Mazzy Starequation, the meaning of the song was lost on many.
Today, I look at the lyrics of “Fade Into You” and Mazzy Star’s legacy.
Mazzy Star’s Journey to Making “Fade Into You”
Every great period of pop-rock music has its great romantics. Mazzy Star’s duo of musicians, Hope Sandoval and David Roback, were destined to be the great idealistic figures of a time when grunge, pop-punk and alternative rock ruled popular culture.
“Fade Into You” became a surprise hit that defined an era when it was released. But the road toward that success was long and unpredictable.
The tale of the band really starts with David Roback and his brother Steven. Both were enamoured with 60s Californian groups like Love and The Byrds. Taking their love of psychedelic sounds, shimmering guitars and layered harmony vocals, Roback formed groups like Rain Parade Opal.
These groups were part of what was dubbed by critics The Paisley Underground. This retro psych-rock scene had many fans among critics, as well as bands like Jesus & Mary Chain.
By 1988, Hope Sandoval had joined as lead singer. When Sandoval began bringing her own composition ideas, the group was rechristened Mazzy Star. Roback’s underground notoriety meant that their debut album, “She Hangs Brightly,” was released by the legendary indie label Rough Trade.
By the early 1990s, the band was ready for a step up. The duo signed to Capitol Records and set about working on their most famous album, “So Tonight That I Might See.”
Writing “Fade Into You”
“Fade Into You” didn’t quite sound like any of the band’s contemporaries when it first hit the airwaves in 1993. Soon, there would be plenty of copycats. This was a clear evolution from those sounds to those who had followed Roback’s career, particularly in the band Opal and the Paisley Underground scene.
Knowing their sound, and their strengths, Sandoval and Roback could work quickly. Both lyrics and music to “Fade Into You” were written and demoed in one single day.
Roback, speaking with news.com.au, explained that the duo wasn’t looking for a hit, but rather something which spoke to them on a personal level: “It came almost at the same time. We weren’t trying to write a hit song – we were just writing a song,” Roback said.
“I think we had a melody and a feel and we just followed that feel. And that became the song… It was acoustic guitar and both of us singing and after we’d written the song then we arranged it for other instruments – piano and slide guitar and drums. But it started out as an acoustic song.”
The result was a powerful song of yearning. Many of its listeners reported feeling sentimental for times gone by whenever they heard the song. But, Roback, again, clarifies that this was not the band’s intention.
“It was never intended to be a nostalgic song,” the songwriter said. “Unless you were meant to think about nostalgia for the present because it really was about the present.“
Meaning of the Lyrics to “Fade Into You”
“Fade Into You” has had a shelf life that has extended its run in the charts. Like all such era-defining songs, there are plenty of myths and theories about what the song’s lyrics mean.
Hope Sandoval delivers a truly powerful, aching vocal performance. That, and the band’s mysterious public personas, all had a hand in cementing the aforementioned theories.
According to what Roback had to say about the song over the years, however, this is a song of unrequited love. It is not a song that romanticizes the past. Rather, it’s a song about taking a chance to fall in love with someone, about living the moment, and about the disappointment of being turned down.
Sandoval sings about her longing to connect with someone on a deeper level, to merge with someone’s spirit. She also sings about the failure to do that.
Audiences connected as much to the actual lyrics as to the interpretation. In a career-defining performance, Sandoval manages to sound both hopeful and distraught. The ability to convey these complicated feelings together contributed to listeners’ enduring admiration for the song.
Finding Success
Capitol Records may have been efficient at making several alternative bands, like The Dandy Warhols, into stars during the 1990s. Still, the expectations were that “So Tonight That I Might See” would be well received by critics and acquire a small contingent of fans.
Instead, “Fade Into You” was something of a sleeper hit. Its impact on the charts, on radio programming and on the record buying public grew slowly.
This is one of the reasons why there exist two separate music videos for “Fade Into You.” The first, directed by Kevin Kerslake, was shot and released in the autumn of 1993. It features the band performing and walking in slow motion through the Mojave Desert.
By the time of its release, the album had already been out for a few years. MTV picked up the video. Being frequently played on the station encouraged the song’s success.
The record label tried to capitalise on this newfound notoriety and financed a second music video. This was filmed in early 1994. It was shot in black and white. This video has a ghostly feel. It features grainy footage of the band performing in an old ballroom or treading through the streets of San Francisco.
By the end of its run, “Fade Into You” had cracked the Top 100 in the US, UK and Australia. It had been a big hit in Iceland and on US Alternative charts. Its popularity continued to grow every subsequent year.
This was the second and final single from the “So Tonight That I Might See” album. The first was “Five String Serenade.” It failed to chart. The album went platinum in the US.
Legacy of Mazzy Star
The public and record label’s expectations for the follow-up record, “Among My Swan”, were high. Mazzy Star refused to promote the record aggressively.
While it sold less than its predecessor, “Among My Swan” cemented Mazzy Star’s cult-like status. The band wouldn’t release another album until 2013’s “Seasons of Your Day.”
“Fade Into You” is seen by most as one of the defining songs of 90s alternative music. It is consistently included on lists celebrating music from that decade.
And while unintended as a nostalgic piece, the song is often included in television shows and movies whenever a character is pondering times gone by. From “Gilmore Girls” to “The To Do List,” you’re likely to have heard the song in mainstream media.
It’s been covered by Ben Harper, American Football, and numerous other bands.
Fittingly, the band’s musicians proved to be aloof and modest. Sandoval, especially, rarely gives interviews. This, and the quality of the song, helped its reputation.
David Roback passed away in 2020. In the 2010s, he reunited Mazzy Star with Sandoval and made new music. This, along with “Fade Into You,” contribute to the enduring reputation of one of the dreamiest-sounding bands in alternative music.
