California-born, Norway-based artist Patrick Morris is releasing his new album Light Years Later under his new band Class Photo, on November 8, 2019. It is an album filled with synths, classic pop melodies, and a true revival to an overlooked genre – Electric pop. We at Ascribe got a chance to check it out, and give it a track-by-track breakdown.
Track 1: “Intro”
I love how the opening to the album is an operating machine. It’s a cool take on an album opening, and something that I foresee being a nice opening to kickstart a concert set!
Track 2: “Yeah You Break (My Heart)”
“Yeah You Break (My Heart)” is the first song that plays on the album, and I know why — when listening to the song the first thought was “Saturday Night Fever!!!” With the good vibes, the rhythm of the song is contrasted with the sad lyrics “Yeah you break my heart” and “The Sun is all I got/Heart is all I got”. “Yeah You Break (My Heart)” is the song you’ll scream the lyrics too while dancing with a friend.
Track 3: “I’ve Been Cleaning Your Room”
This song is total opposite when it comes to the level of beat. While it’s not a slow sorrow or power ballad, it does hold back on the dance vibe it could’ve easily slipped into. Instead, it uses its steady beat and pace as a way to compliment the theme of the song. Morris sings “I’ve been cleaning up after you” on repeat in a tone not of anger but acceptance. It is as if he has come to accept that he will always be cleaning up after the others messes, even when they obviously don’t seem to care: “I’ll shovel while you have a cigarette.”
I think it’s a powerful song in that it expresses that point in a relationship where it’s obviously one-sided, and you recognize that fact, but you still find yourself staying, retaining your role, and “cleaning their room”.
Track 4: “Metallic Shades”
“Metallic Shades” is one of my favorite songs on the album. I mean this is the song you hear as the protagonist goes through their “change” moment. The guitar solo, which is the only one of two on the album, is a thing of beauty. I love the line “And now that I miss you / you’re a phone call away / can’t talk today”. Overall, I believe the song to be about how she only cared when Morris character was on top of the word (wearing metallic shades), but now that he isn’t she’s on to the next thing. “Metallic Shades” was not a single, but it has all the potential to become one!
Track 5: “Does The Cap Fit”
“Does The Cap Fit” is probably my least favorite on the album. It I feel like it’s too close to “I’ve Been Cleaning Your Room” given that the pace of it’s beat is almost similar, and the way the way that Morris chants “Does The Cap Fit”. However, I do like the way that the song title plays off the phrase “does the shoe fit?”, and I the themes of distrust and deceit.
Track 6: “Intermede D’Incertitude”
This showed me two things:
- My French is not rusty, it’s extinct (the title translates to “Interlude Uncertainty”, which I think quite complements the song before and after it).
- I still love interludes
Track 7: “Foreign Pictures”
“Foreign Pictures” is my second favorite song on Light Years Later. I love the added synths, spoken French, and clapping that is in the song. I also enjoy how the darker lyrics of “In foreign pictures the ending can be dark” and the parallels between the lyrics “In foreign pictures we don’t know when it starts / In foreign pictures we don’t know when it stops”.
The song sounds like it’s talking about the harsher realities that foreign (to America) countries face, with main focus in Europe, and how there is always a level of fragile uncertainty (reference back to the interlude!!!). With lyrics like “Brush up on your Arabic” and “German flick,” I believe this is possibly taking about the displaced refugees from Syria, and how around 600,000 were displaced to Germany. But also, the exclusion that they face “In foreign pictures we need to hit rewind / In foreign pictures we don’t know any stars”. That they are rarely the focus in America mainstream news (or in the theme of the song, pictures).
Track 8: “Hard Conversations”
“Hard Conversations” is the last single that’s on this album, but it is certainly not the least. In a song that balances the up-beat tunes with the real struggles of dealing with the death of a loved one, Morris finds a way to do that tastefully. I think what makes the song relatable to those who may have experienced the same tragedy – the loss of a parent – is the line “I’ll make it up to you somehow”.
Track 9: “Magic Energy”
This song is cute. I don’t think the song is the strongest lyrically, compared to the rest of the tunes on the album, and as a result it creates a slump in the flow of the record. Overall, I think this particular song would’ve been better for the B-sides.
Track 10: “Driving In A Storm”
From wanting to escape your town to reckless actions that cause car crashes, if you like a more laid-back pop-punk, this is for you. The simplicity of the percussion mixed with the (so amazing) guitar solo makes me think of early 2000s tunes. Whether you are wanting to dig into deep on the lyrics, “Cruise control is a problem in the rain” (You can avoid taking control of your emotions during turmoil), or simply want to use this song as proof that you should always offer to pay for gas (“I filled it up just because I need a ride”), this song is perfect for it!
Track 11: “Keyboards On Her Fingers”
Although Class Photo is an indie band, this is probably the only song on the album that makes me think “Indie band!!” — which is not a bad thing at all! I like how this shows the more toned down side of the band without almost genre-crossing like “Driving In A Storm” did. This song does seem to have some British Synth Pop vibes to it. Overall, the track is chill, and something I would play to study too.
Track 12: “Narrow Escape”
What I like about this song is unlike the other songs on this album, it produced more of a story-telling setup. As the girl is escaping from the possibility of being an experiment, Morris takes on a narrator’s perspective. Telling the listener that “You can’t catch her” and she had escaped through the blockade, and yet you still find yourself holding your breath waiting for the end of the story.
Track 13: “Hold Music”
To wrap up the concept of this album (we’ve been on hold for a while), the last “song” on the album is actually an outro ending with an automated machine apologizing for the delay. Again it is a cool concept that lets the album end how all phone calls end when you’ve been put on hold for almost half an hour: “A sales representative you back shortly.” *Click*
My overall thoughts on Light Years Later is that it’s a solid piece of work. It’s filled with upbeat feel-good tunes, and deep messages and metaphors. Who knows, maybe Class Photo will successfully bring back the Synth/Disco era? I mean we already have the bell bottoms and windbreaker jackets!
Light Years Later releases November 8th. You can stream Class’s Photo’s latest single, “Yeah You Break (My Heart)”, here.
