I haven’t written an album review in 10 years. I’m not going to make this all about me — this isn’t an online recipe with a 3,000 word preamble/self-therapy session — but I feel compelled to set the stage, because I want to make it clear that Away With Words’ debut didn’t just shake me from a writing slump, but something bordering on a coma.
Back when I was grinding myself to dust writing about 100 album reviews a year, interviewing bands and taking photos at shows, I was having a great time, but I reached the point where I had nothing more to say. I was burnt out. I didn’t swear off music writing (in fact, I’ve almost written at least a dozen reviews since), but I didn’t realize the extent to which I’d salted the earth behind me.
But when the final moments of the closing track, “DIANE” rolled back up to the opening notes of “SUPERFUTURE,” there was suddenly something resembling growth. When I started jotting down notes, blooms. Now that I’m actively writing this out I feel 20 years old again; I feel like I did before the burnout.
Here’s where the limits of my capabilities are still apparent: I can’t actually explain to you what it is about “THE LATE” that shook me awake. What I can do is share with you some of my notes:
“Ready to Leave” is the pinnacle late-summer-driving-with-the-windows-down song. I’m not saying it’s necessarily simple, but it’s a quick and easy chorus to sing along to almost immediately combined with a delivery that makes it difficult to just sit there and quietly bob your head. After 2.5 listens the whole 3 minutes is stuck in your head.
Moving into, “Vessel,” it’s impossible not to feel some real “Proper”-era Into It. Over It. vibes, but they capture the influence without it feeling like a ripoff. The swelling instrumentals that build over baseline as the singer (couldn’t tell you their name — it’s not listed anywhere, they’re THAT new! Get in on the ground floor and YOU can be the one telling your friends about this great band no one knows about/ end of pyramid scheme informercial) repeats some variation of the line “Don’t cover it up, you can’t cover it up/Venus fly trap eyelashes all covered in dust”? Hooboy! And the transition into the plucky introspection of “Open Road”? Chef’s kiss.
The acoustic and/or more stripped back tracks, including “Open Road,” “Tenements” and “Lost in The Dark,” almost serve as pit stops that lay bare some of the central themes on the record: love, growth, regret, frustration and acceptance.
“Lost in the Light” may be the crown jewel of this album. It’s got an intro that wouldn’t feel out of place on a pre-hiatus The Sleeping record. It’s dark and dancy until it’s not. I know this goes against everything a review stands for but I’m not going to say any more. I don’t want to give anything about the climax away. If you only listen to one song on the record after reading this, I believe you’re a fool, but I also believe you should make it this one.
Every choice on this, from the writing to the production, was clearly made so thoughtfully: the order of the track list; transitions from one seemingly unconnected song to the next; the clarity of specific riffs or lines or drum fills; the distorted vocals coming in and out of songs like “Us and Them” — every note and every lyric serves to keep you engaged.
Finally, just when I thought I couldn’t be more surprised by this record, “Head on my Shoulders” drops a sudden Third Eye Blind-ish spoken element in line with something you’d hear on “Ursa Major.” If that doesn’t sound like your thing, don’t worry, I get it. It’s done Michelin star restaurant-level tastefully.
I’m not saying this is going to be THE ALBUM™ for everyone. Hell, it may not even be my AOTY, and I’ve said all these wonderful things about it! But I will say it’s album with something for everyone. It also serves as a potent reminder to my 32-year-old self that staying open to the discovery aspect of music instead of getting sucked into the nostalgia represses and tours is the only way to keep capturing those genuine moments where a song knocks the wind out of you for the first time before it fills you back up. And what a feeling that is.
FFO: Into It. Over It., All Get Out, Weatherbox
Release Date: 8/23/24
Rating: 7.8/10
Tracklist
- SUPERFUTURE
- Ready to Leave
- Vessel
- Open Road
- Lost in the Light
- Tenements
- This Ghost of You
- Us & Them
- Lost in the Dark
- Head on my Shoulders
- DIANE
Written by Alisha Kirby
The Scope of 