Released in 1990, the album “She Hangs Brightly” is pining and serene, mirroring a contemplative and nostalgic holiday season. If I asked my mom what she was doing in the winter of the 90s, she would say sitting on the floor of her new apartment, wearing overalls and listening to Mazzy Star with cold rain pattering outside while she quietly unpacked moving boxes. This image and music creates a faultless picture of change. “She Hangs Brightly” is perfect for a wistful holiday break and an emerging new year. It is a great collection to listen to while resting in bed, curled up under your covers and reminiscing on the past 12 months. Throughout the holiday season, I find myself reflective and missing the best times of the past year, and this album truly captures that feeling. The whole album is dreamy and sweet (as Mazzy Star tends to be). The songs repeatedly reference changing your mind, leaving and holding on to sentimental past memories, experiences and people who have previously held a special place in your life. The instrumentals include bells, chimes, and hazy guitar which come across as slow and wintery. In the song “Halah,” the lyrics “but just before I see that you leave/I want you to hold on to things that you said,” show a strained connection to a significant relationship that may be leaving. Holding on to these experiences and talking about people from the past initially seems like the singer is fearful and opposed to change. However, the music doesn’t make the singer’s fear seem avoidant. Because of the singers’ lilting voice, the fear feels like discussing or thinking over the inevitable change, not dreading it. Featuring glimmering and warm instrumentals, even the album’s name, “She Hangs Brightly,” resembles the glow of holidays. It carries a feeling of opening yourself from the comfort of the last few months of the year to the opportunity of a new year and new change, even if you wish to hold on to what you’ve become used to.