It’s been four years since Stick Season went viral online because of the line: "The doc told me to travel, but there’s COVID on the planes." Four years since his sold-out show in Fenway Park (Boston) and since his nomination for Best New Artist at the Grammys.
His fourth studio album feels like a warm scarf in autumn, yet it somehow still fits the summer vibes his previous work has been categorised under. The single ‘The Great Divide’ has topped the Billboard charts since its release on January 30, and it was the perfect overview of the full album.
A song where he explores his religious trauma, something that’s barely spoken about. About this song, he said that ‘they are the words I would say if I could. They are the fears I dance with in the moments before I drift off to sleep’. This divide he describes throughout the whole 77 minutes forms from suppressed anger and questions you conveniently avoid. It symbolises the psychological distance between a person suffering quietly and the other, who is unaware of what’s happening.
'They are the fears I dance with in the moments before I drift off to sleep’.
‘End of August’ kicks off the album with a hidden message. He is talking about the emotional weight of the seasonal change. Not only do the landscapes change, but we change with them. Even though we can do nothing to stop this, it reflects how we feel powerless in trying to stop this change. The mention of the month September triggers his emotional change:
‘The minute that September hits, I’m going off my medicine.'
Similar to the first song, ‘Headed North’ is a stripped-down version that could have been perfectly recorded on the street during a busking performance. This song suggests finding your path (in an emotional sense). It gives you the message of moving forward to something better.
‘Doors’ discusses all the reasons you’ve given someone you love to leave, but despite how many open doors he shows people with the hopes of them leaving, they stay. He describes himself as ‘trouble ahead’, and apologises for jumping at ‘the rattle of the keys’ or his partner leaving the bed, since everyone in his life always leaves. This describes the feeling of loving with fear to perfection, and it’s definitely one of my favourites.
‘Dashboard’ and ’23’ are interlinked, and whoever decided to put them next to each other in the album deserves a rise. ‘Dashboard’ follows the car theme that seems to be in every song of the album, but this talks about crossing state lines with more anger than before. Calling someone an ‘asshole’ for leaving everything behind without resolving your problems:
‘You always went looking for an easy way out / Look at you go, crossing state lines with your shadow.’
’23’ follows a parallel theme, but during this song, he realises who he is. He’s been running all the time. He’s working to accept that, and trying to let go of the person he was before.
As the song plays, you can see the exhaustion of the mother - waiting for his son to come back home, that’s why she always leaves the porch light on.
Similar to ‘The Great Divide’, ‘Porch Light’ is the other single of the album. Released just a few weeks before the full record, this song touches a sensitive topic for everyone: mothers worrying about their children. In this case, Noah’s mother is worried about how fame is affecting his song. It gives a voice to parents who might feel burdened by caring about how their children are doing, especially after their children skyrocket to fame. As the song plays, you can see the exhaustion of the mother - waiting for his son to come back home, that’s why she always leaves the porch light on.
‘I would ask you how you’ve been, it’s all over the internet.'
Lyrically speaking, this might be one of the best songs he’s ever written. You can clearly see the raw emotion in every lyric. The way he expresses emotion as if he were his mother is something that I’ve never seen in a song. Produced by Aaron Dessner and recorded at the iconic Long Pond Studios, the album shows that Aaron never disappoints with his style.
To end the album, he wrote two of his more personal songs: ‘We Go Way Back’ (in honour of his wife) and ‘Dan’ (in honour of his best friend). This first one explains how he has been able to protect and manage his relationship with his beloved wife:
‘Saw the world from up close, it ain’t much to look at compared to you in your work clothes, waving hello from the driveway’.
‘Dan’ is the last song of the album, and in my opinion, it is the perfect song to end the record. Fans speculate that this is the song that best resembles the album cover. Two childhood friends, running around without a worry. They’ve grown up together, and they’ve seen the struggles of the world together. Kahan tries to write his feelings about the bond that both of them hold, going back in time for the good and the bad memories:
‘But I’m with my best friend now, camping on the country line’.
These 17 tracks reflect on how his fame and success have impacted his lifestyle, as not only has his life been turned upside down, but his family’s life has as well. It shows how much he cares about the people who surround him and how he is who he is because of those beside him.
It shows how much he cares about the people who surround him and how he is who he is because of those beside him.
As the natural successor to Stick Season, I think his storytelling has improved significantly since his last album. From writing about his personal experience of moving away from home to experience something new, to now writing about how everyone back home feels after his rise to fame.
Now preparing for his stadium tour, where he’ll be landing in Glasgow, Manchester, London and Dublin, fans are already preparing for the much-awaited shows. If you haven’t listened to his new release, I would very much recommend you do so.