What do you expect to gain from showing someone an album that they are not familiar with? With no previous context or familiarity, Aubrey Eytchison and I swapped two commonly known albums and listened to them separately to find out for ourselves. We chose our current favorite albums: “Forever” by Noah Kahan and “For Emma, Forever Ago” by Bon Iver.
“For Emma, Forever Ago” by Bon Iver, written by Avery Decker
As I began listening to “For Emma, Forever Ago” by Bon Iver, I immediately felt the need to change my location from the small walls of my dorm room to the front seat of my car. I needed to drive off campus with the sunroof open, windows down and wind blowing in my hair. I did not know exactly why, but it just felt right.
“Come on skinny love just last the year,” Bon Iver said.
I did not want to stop driving. I wanted to go until I could not go anymore. I drove until the tears stopped flowing.
The entirety of this album has an ambiance, unlike anything I have ever heard before. As “Skinny Love” blared through my car speakers, it was as if nothing around me existed anymore. Everything became still. Everything became timeless.
I felt safe as these songs shuffled through my playlist.
This album is not just about publishing songs; it is about the depths of Ivers’s heart, and you can feel how personal and lyrical each song is. It is as if he is telling his own story through each song.
Each song tends to bring a sorrowful tone to mind, but it is slightly romantic and distorted.
I gained a new appreciation for Iver and for myself. I appreciated how Iver allowed me space to feel any and every emotion. I appreciated myself for feeling those emotions.
It almost feels wrong for someone else to have shown me this soulful and therapeutic album. How did I not discover this myself? How did they know I needed this album in my life?
“Forever” by Noah Kahan, written by Aubrey Eytchison
“Say whatever you feel; be wherever you are. We ain’t angry at you love.” — “You’re Gonna Go Far,” Noah Kahan
I do not know who gave Noah Kahan license to heal trauma that he did not cause but man is he good at it.
I wish I could say that I listened to the two hours and one minute of Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season (Forever)” in one sitting, giving the album my undivided and full attention. It would be a lie; I listened to the album while driving, buying groceries and making tomato soup, the songs acting as a sort of soundtrack for my mundane Wednesday. Some albums work well that way; you listen to them as a way of adding color. Even while I was multitasking, however, I realized that I was spending less time working and more time listening, standing still in the kitchen every few minutes — even every few seconds. The album refused to be ignored.
At some point, I stopped trying to do other things and just stood there. I was halfway through the album when a thought struck me: are people who love Noah Kahan okay? His songs — which are melodically and lyrically soothing — talk about alcoholism and sobriety, broken relationships and mental health issues. Is it really a good idea for anyone to be listening to this?
It was not until the second to last song of the album that I figured out the answer, because the chorus of “You’re Gonna Go Far” hit me dead in my chest. Yes, Noah Kahan is talking about mental health issues and how hard sobriety is. He speaks intelligently about trauma and how hard it is to live with it. He is giving that experience dignity. He also asks the listener to do the same with whatever reflections of trauma in their life make his music easy to relate to.
There is a sense in which all music sharing is a kind of soul-bearing and that we should be careful when we receive that kind of gift from someone. The gift of this album being recommended to me felt almost sacred.