“This song was inspired by an experience I had when getting caught in a snowstorm in Iceland. My classmates and I were riding in a bus down a lone road while the sun was still up, surrounded by empty land. There were no homes, no cars, no fences—nothing to block the wind for miles. The windows suddenly filled with white swirls. I was sitting in the middle seat of the back row that overlooked the aisle, and I could see the bus tilting from side to side with every gush of air. Part of me knew, for a fact, that we would be fine. But part of me wondered what would happen if the bus tilted over. Would we die? Would anyone find us? Even with these thoughts running through my head, it was strangely relieving to realize how disconnected I was from my “normal” life in that moment. All the things I need to do and the expectations I need to meet usually weigh me down, but for a second they didn’t mean anything. There was something beautiful about just being a person on land. And this song grew out of how easy it is to forget that.”—Lexi Riesenberg

Song produced by Connor Riley
Thumbnail image by Anna Letson

“Numb” appears as part of a special feature dedicated to the Dean’s Honor Society’s 2017-2018 trip to Iceland.