The Art of Forgetting, Sunny

"I just gotta do my thing / And shake it off."

A classic album conceit: a grief processing album for ostensibly the grief of a broken relationship, but also the general grief of current living. The Art of Forgetting spans between air-y space-y indie sound (tacks in the front half—see "Love/Lover/Friend" & "Rebirth") to a more earth-y down-the-middle indie rock outfit (tacks in the back half—"Tell Me" & "Where Do I Go"). In addition to playing with the sonic presentation, there's a thematic/emotional push and pull; a sort of two steps forward one step back, which is played around with a few times (e.g. "Bring the Rain" to "Doldrums").

So, does that work as an album? It feels somewhat true to life in that grief isn't an A-to-B process but rather a set of fits and starts which transmute into larger acceptance. So, that's cool. At ~50min, there's gonna be some slack, some forgettable tracks, and some adventures that I just don't connect with. There are also a couple fun, bouncy earworms that I've found myself humming all week (e.g. the epigraph). So, not amazing enough to go to Union Transfer 4/11, but pretty good, and an artist I'm glad I'm now aware of.

P.S. I will give a nod to the "skits" here (for lack of better word)—an extended string of voicemails from CR's meemaw and ultimately a call back. Fairly sweet—they do a nice job of keeping the album "up" when it may otherwise get too sad, and the final taste at the end leaves a tone of hope after a discourse on a lot of tough and varied emotions.

P.P.S. I could also go for a grilled cheese sandwich and some chips and stuff. Somehow, it would help me get through this life.