Swansea-based multi-instrumentalist Tom Emlyn’s album Passing Craze showcases his prolific, wide-ranging songcraft. Blending 1960s folk-influenced melodies, spacey synths, and touches of piano, harmonica, and strings, the self-produced record maps a dark yet humorous landscape of anthropological observations, emotional avoidance, and fleeting connections.
Album opener “Starsick” delights in its swift guitar twangs and emerging synths, venturing from a classic guitar-pop energy to spacey blares of electronics. A title-bearing refrain compels in its hooky enamoring, and also during a “too much to lose” segment, where bouncy bass propels into an infectiously shouty, harmonica-touched concluding passion. Passing Craze is full of gripping songwriting and melodic charm, and it’s evident right away with “Starsick.” The ensuing “Miss Understood” melds “sick of second best” vocal laments with a tighter guitar/synth interplay. Emlyn’s vocals are particularly dynamic here, enveloping in their range of eerie ascents and suave retrospections.
The release’s title track is a particular standout, stirring in its hazy folk amiability. Emlyn’s songwriting plays with relatable prowess, conveying a state of in-between and ruminating on the futility of chasing trends while real connections crumble around you. “Is love just a song you sing when you’re pissed?” Emlyn’s vocals ask, lamenting “I know you’ll never be mine / It was just a passing fad.” The juxtaposition of fleeting love with short-lived cultural crazes is artfully interwoven. Another gem in the folk realm, “A Series of Misunderstandings” is gorgeous in its twinkling piano and heartfelt string infusions, set amidst themes that continue contemplations on the profound isolation of emotional avoidance and second-guessing: “Were you scared that you might accidentally feel something?” Passing Craze is a consistently captivating full-length output from Tom Emlyn.
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“Passing Craze” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
We discovered this release via MusoSoup.
