Jonathan Calhoun’s Over The Street Lights To The Stars is a reminder of how effortlessly genre-bending can be done when it’s in the right hands. Much like Beck, Calhoun doesn’t merely dabble in styles; he fuses them with a natural ease that feels both fresh and inevitable.
The album opener, “Exile,” lays this groundwork with a distinctive Eastern flair. The distorted guitar cuts through the mix with a raw edge, while Calhoun’s voice adds a particular charm that sets the tone for what’s to come. “Friday Night and Forever” shifts gears into a tighter rock framework, but it’s the rhythmic play, especially the syncopation, that keeps the track unpredictable.
Perhaps the most surprising twist arrives with “Forget About the End of the World,” where a heavy house beat unexpectedly drives the track forward, emerging as one of the album’s standout moments. Then there’s “Paint On The Walls,” a more introspective cut that nods to Leonard Cohen in its meditative delivery, inviting listeners to lean in a little closer.
As the album unfolds, Calhoun's ability to explore different emotional terrains becomes more evident. “The Search Begins Again” stands out for its bright optimism, a refreshing contrast to the darker themes tackled elsewhere. “The End and the After,” for instance, plunges into reflections on death, isolation, and memory, while tracks like the title song and “Ride On” add to the album’s layered depth.
Calhoun’s knack for blending styles is where his true power lies, and with Over The Street Lights To The Stars, he crafts an album that feels purposeful in its eclecticism
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