Review Summary: The vocalist for The Republic of Wolves and Tigers on Trains has created a wistful, refined extended play that will grow on you with each listen.
Mason Maggio is a man of many talents. Between Tigers on Trains and The Republic of Wolves, he's made a name for himself within both indie-folk and alternative rock circles. One musical outlet that fans might be less aware of is Souveneer, Mason's solo project which has churned out two EPs (
Merit Badge Season,
Strange Artifacts), two singles ('Think You Through', 'Trash TV'), and a Vampire Weekend covers album (
Don’t Call Me A Contra). His latest extended play,
Dream Journal, is a decidedly thoughtful and rather dejected affair that finds Mason writing some of his most mature content yet. It's a series of polished vignettes; elegies which reflect upon loss and solitude.
Perhaps we should have seen something like this coming after a year like 2020, but it's still jarring to hear the author of 'Birdless Cage' (The Republic of Wolves,
shrine, 2018) go from belting out that flourishing, optimistic chorus of "I'll be fine if we never wake up from this" to
Dream Journal's unintended counterpart, 'Hang Your Paintings on Me', where he laments, "I'm a bird caught inside an electrified fence." Something about this EP seems very close to home for Maggio, as he sings about troubled relationships ("We didn't speak in 2017 and since then once or twice / Still seem to hurt each other's feelings from time to time"), losing one's sense of self ("I've got no more pride to lose, feel free to deprecate me if it medicates you"), feeling stationary in life ("I don't really move without somewhere to go, so I guess I'll never catch the views / Just show me the photos the next time you do"), and not being able to detect pain ("Go ahead and hang your paintings on me, probably won't feel the nails if they don't go too deep"). It doesn't sink much lower than the simply stated, soul-shattering line "When you were hopeless...you were right" – and that's a pretty grim assessment of where Maggio's mind is at on
Dream Journal. While most of these tracks are acoustically driven and rely upon the listener to immerse her/himself into the lyrical content, those who
do make that extra effort will be rewarded with some of Maggio's rawest and most emotional sentiments ever.
Although
Dream Journal sinks into plenty of depressing realizations, it still manages to project an uplifting tone. It's a remarkable feat accomplished almost entirely through atmosphere, thanks in part to the pristine acoustics and incredibly beautiful accents that are interwoven throughout. 'Radium' is an early gem, sneaking in some subtle violins before culminating in a gorgeous duet between Mason Maggio and Alex Aller, who uses her breathtaking vocals to elevate the mood of the entire song – almost like a friend grasping your hand to pull you to safety from a cliff’s ledge, or in this case the brink of a mental collapse. 'St. Saitta' features elegant brass horns, which ring out across the song's final minute in a fashion that seems equally as playful as inspiring. The experience is at its most invigorated, though, on 'Real Life' – an up-tempo slice of folk rock which embraces listeners with its huge, layered chorus (to draw a parallel, think of the "where do all the lost minds go" bit from
shrine's 'Bask'). It's these little moments that manage to lift
Dream Journal out of its own murky shadow, giving us an album that is somehow just as hopeful as it is full of sadness.
On the poignant closer, 'People Hold Candles, Nora', Mason leaves us with these parting words: "I'm taking this heartache with me, but I'm not going far." It's an indication of exactly what
Dream Journal was meant to be: a cathartic vessel, and a means of dealing with the temporary grief that seems to have shaped this EP. His willing acknowledgement that brighter days lie ahead is a relatable feeling for many of us right now, and it’s a fitting way to tie the bow on this collection of somber folk songs.
Dream Journal sees Mason Maggio trying to further the sound established on his earlier Souveneer works, and he largely succeeds due to an injection of sonic energy (brass/strings, Aller’s duet) alongside complementary vocal roles from band mates like Billy Duprey and Christian Van Deurs. For such a melancholic little EP,
Dream Journal gives us a lot of reasons to smile.
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