Gather around. is leading his audience to therapy 鈥� or a walk in the woods.
Kahan鈥檚 fourth studio album, 鈥淭he Great Divide,鈥� out Friday, picks up where left off with folksy, introspective hooks and catchy choruses that hit like a windows-down drive on a cool summer night.
Recorded primarily in Nashville and upstate New York and produced by Gabe Simon with the 17-track album finds Kahan reaching for like family trauma, sobriety and home. The album sounds similar to its predecessor, but here, Kahan explores perspectives outside of his own. It’s as if he asked himself: What if 鈥淪tick Season鈥� had a different point of view?
It鈥檚 impossible to recapture the past, and the pressure to follow-up 鈥淪tick Season鈥� with another successful release weighed heavily on Kahan, as he revealed in his new Netflix documentary 鈥淣oah Kahan: Out of Body,鈥� released just ahead of the album.
The result is 鈥淭he Great Divide鈥� 鈥� not a radical departure from the 2022 record that won him a but an enjoyable listen nonetheless. Anyone hoping for a new style should look elsewhere. Though there are some new features, notably piano and some rock-pop detours that stand out in 鈥淎merican Cars,鈥� a sound best described as meets 鈥淭he Boys of Summer.鈥�
鈥淒oors,鈥� the second track, is all the best parts of Kahan: Blistering guitars, searching lyrics, heavy subject matter. 鈥淗ave you ever stared directly at the sun? / Have you ever shared some closeness, so exposed, to have it spit back by someone?鈥�
鈥淭he Great Divide,鈥� the title track and lead single, has an aching humanity in its lyrics and a searing juxtaposition inviting the listener to view haunting spirits, killers and illness as, well, not the worst things. 鈥淚 hope you’re scared of only ordinary s鈥�-鈥� / Like murderers and ghosts and cancer on your skin / And not your soul, and what he might do with it.鈥�
But it鈥檚 the pre-chorus that resonates deeply. Rhythmic guitar chord changes come into the foreground, adding a layer to the quicker strumming that carries throughout the song. The effect is like a building wave.
鈥淵ou know I think about you all the time,鈥� he sings, 鈥淎nd my deep misunderstanding of your life.鈥�
It’s impossible to recreate 鈥淪tick Season,鈥� but the album doesn’t endeavor to rehash the past. It carries on, a kindred spirit to its predecessor, and why not? Seasons change, but they come back again.
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鈥淭he Great Divide鈥� by Noah Kahan
Four stars out of five.
On repeat: 鈥淒oors,鈥� 鈥淧aid Time Off,鈥� 鈥淭he Great Divide鈥�
Skip it: 鈥淲e Go Way Back鈥�
For fans of: The Lumineers, Taylor Swift’s pandemic albums, Jason Isbell
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