December 5, 2019
Artist: Wallows
Album: Nothing Happens
Record Label: Atlantic Records
Recommended Tracks: Track 7 – “Worlds Apart” and Track 10 – “I’m Full”
2019 was a great year for album releases, especially in the indie-rock genre. One of my favorite albums that came out this year was Nothing Happens by Wallows. It came out at the beginning of the year on March 22, 2019. It’s the band’s debut album and it easily became one of my top albums of the year. Now that it has been out for eight months, I’ve spent a lot of time streaming the album and digesting it. When you’re anticipating an album release, sometimes the build-up for it can overshadow how it actually makes you feel. But for Nothing Happens, as time has passed, I can confidently say that it still holds up as being an amazing album and one that I can always come back to without it beginning to feel stale. Sonically, Wallows show that they have grown by using cleaner production, rhythmic variety, and personal lyrics also driven by narrative elements. I rate the album 4 and a half out of five.
The first recommended track, “Worlds Apart” is one of the slower and more melodic songs on Nothing Happens. It has a ballad-like and dreamy feel to it stemming from the instrumentation which are paired beautifully with Braeden Lemasters’ vocals. The beginning of the song opens with soft drum beats underneath buzzing guitars. Then, Braeden’s vocals fade in. He has a big vocal range allowing him to sing high notes and low notes, and on Worlds Apart he keeps a consistent low-tone for the entirety of the song. His low tone and dragged out notes add a nice contrast to the dreamy effect that the instruments create. My favorite part of the song starts at 2:50, closing out the song with a long instrumental outro that slowly builds up tension, but it doesn’t overpower the overall sweetness of the song. I like the small detail of the last second of the song where it ends abruptly, almost as if someone suddenly detached their AUX cord. Lyrically, the song seems to describe a relationship that has ended and one person keeps thinking about the other and wonders if they still think about them too. “Do I exist in your heart? Or did the ship sail away?”
The second recommended track, “I’m Full,” is one of the more fast-paced and high-energy songs on Nothing Happens. The bass guitar is one of the highlights of this song. It serves as the core instrumental piece for the majority of the song and adds a layer of richness underneath the guitars when they’re added. Dylan Minnette is on vocals and I think this song perfectly suits his vocal range. At the 2:28 mark, everything comes to a crescendo and there’s a burst of intensity coming from all angles. It’s definitely an album highlight on Nothing Happens.
I’m looking forward to what Wallows will release in 2020 and I highly recommend everyone to check out Nothing Happens for a great listening experience!
