As with any body of work, composition and cohesiveness are two key factors to creating something that flows effortlessly. Echoes of Departure and the Endless Street of Dreams Pt 1, the debut album from BTS cover alum Logan Henderson, exudes those qualities and shines a light in the direction of dark pop music.
Produced by Henderson’s longtime friend, Nick “RAS” Furlong, the growth in both lyric and sound have been a long time coming. With more than two years behind the longtime friends, the tracks that fans have been waiting for are finally here.
With a compelling intro track that immediately pulls emotion from the listener, Henderson’s vocals are effortless over piano chords that slowly build into more. Used as the intro to his live show, “Intro” is a perfect introduction into what the next minutes will be like for the listener. Themes are gently played across the minute long track, all of which are found throughout the rest of the body of work.
As the intro concludes, Henderson’s oh so familiar debut single “Sleepwalker” begins to play, signaling the growth from past music he’s created. The track follows the similar motif as the introduction, pulling in the context of sleep, dreaming and waking up. It’s cohesive with the introduction and instills almost a feeling of fear in listener’s minds.
As “Sleepwalker” concludes, we’re moved into Henderson’s first and current radio single, “Bite My Tongue.” An anthem for introverts everywhere, “Bite My Tongue” grabbed the attention of iHeartRadio and listeners around the world, earning him a coveted spot performing for Los Angeles’ Wango Tango pre-festival village. “Bite My Tongue” is relatable, up-beat and a perfect third track to further the reader into their dreams of reality.
As Henderson’s radio single concludes, the fourth track on Echoes of Departure and the Endless Street of Dreams Pt 1 is one more that previous fans might already know. Released as a surprise single late last year, “Speak of the Devil” is almost eery in a way. Backed by a strong, slightly off-key synth part, the track is definitely different and reflects Henderson’s growth in music, especially vocally. Lyrically, this track is strong, a little bit more mature than previous tracks and is already a fan favorite. As the track concludes, Henderson’s vocals are reversed which creates an almost creepy, Thom Yorke (Radiohead) way of tricking the listener into hearing something else.
As listeners settle into EODATESOD, an album title that rivals the length of album titles like The 1975’s 2016 release, i like it when you sleep for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it, the next track begins. Played acoustically exclusively until the album, “Take It Out On Me” defines the level of maturity in Henderson’s lyrics as well as influences for his music. From a production prospective, “Take It On Out Me” has multiple layers from harmonies to a slowly bouncing synth part that’s just there enough to make the listener stop, listen a second time, or in many cases, a third. The track continues to pull the listener into a moment of dreaming, the concept of reality and furthers the listener into the idea of sleeplessness.
As the listener continues on their journey in dreams and reality, “Evergreen” begins, drawing the listener closer into both Henderson’s heart and mind. ‘Do you still think about me?’ rings throughout the track as Henderson reflects on past love and memories. While the concept is almost reflective and mournful, the production of “Evergreen” brings the track to an entirely new level, with a bouncing synth part, heavy bass drop and backing vocals that completes the track.
As Echoes of Departure and the Endless Street of Dreams Pt 1 comes to the final track, the listener has just barely grasped Henderson’s perspective on love, life and his growth in music. To conclude, “Generations” is the track that really opens up Henderson to his fans, friends and listeners. The lyrics are honest and tie up themes from throughout the rest of the album. Lyrically “Generations” reflects a darker and more honest approach to Henderson’s music and the musical composition also reflects that sound.
While EODATESOD is on the shorter side, it’s also just part one of the story to be told. The album is compositionally sound and cohesive, already making an impression on the thousands of fans that stand behind the singer. Henderson shines a light on his personality, his musical inspiration and where he plans to go next, all in a short seven songs.
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