"Lauv incorporated some fast-paced, cheery music while also bringing in melancholy-type instrumentals, but this album overall is not one to overwhelm its listeners with the different emotions it comes with. There is a balance and one can notice this while listening."
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Must Listen
By Bruna Cucolo
Recommended songs: “Sims,” “i’m so tired…,” and “Sad Forever”
American artist Lauv has released his debut album ~how i’m feeling~, a collection of songs that bring both a light and upbeat sound to people’s ears while talking about difficult life topics. Under the label AWAL, this record is full of feelings from depression and anxiety to happiness and being in love. The 21-track record is finally here for those who have been needing new music they can relate to and reflect on life with.
Throughout it all, Lauv incorporated some fast-paced, cheery music while also bringing in melancholy-type instrumentals, but the album overall is not one to overwhelm its listeners with the different emotions it comes with. There is a balance and one can notice this while listening. Lauv was also able to collaborate with other artists in his album such as Alessia Cara, Troye Sivan, LANY, and more. These collaborations give the album more variety in sound throughout.
The album opens with an older single that was released last April called “Drugs & The Internet,” which is a great starter. Beginning off slow and gentle, it picks up at the chorus with “I traded all my friends for drugs and the internet.” Although a fun song to dance along to, it is about anxiety, social media and the struggles many people face including Lauv himself. The fact that he speaks up about these issues is what makes fans both appreciate his work and feel better knowing that they are not the only ones going through these things.
“Feelings,” the seventh track on the album, is about a situation several people may have gone through before. Lauv expresses his feelings about someone and wanting to go further than being just friends and taking the next step – “Know we’ve been friends and only love knows broken ends.” This song could make a listener think of a time where they felt strongly about someone and wanted to dive in deeper with their relationship.
Moving ahead to track 15, “El Tejano” featuring Sofía Reyes is a lively Latin-style track. It mentions a bar and restaurant called El Tejano that Lauv has frequented in the past. As it turns out, Reyes also goes there frequently, making this the perfect collaboration.
The album ends with “Modern Loneliness,” Lauv’s favorite song he has ever made. A song about loneliness (hence the title) in the modern world, he sings about how people can still feel lonely a lot even when regularly being surrounded by friends. This song really makes one think and reflect on how people can still feel alone despite not appearing that way on the surface. He sings, “We’re never alone, but we’re always depressed,” and those might just be the most real lyrics off of the album.
Being just over an hour long, ~how i’m feeling~ will doubtlessly give you the feels. With an album that provides listeners with lyrics of true emotions they have likely experienced or are experiencing currently, there is no questioning that one will relate to at least one of the songs on this album.
Lauv shows that no one is alone in feeling the emotions he sings about; he is candid about these feelings and one can tell that he is as honest as ever on this album. From deeper to more light-hearted songs, it is clear that the lyrics behind each track are incredibly meaningful and real, the overall composition and production of the album – from vocals to instrumentals – helping to establish that deeper connection between the artist and his listeners even more.
