The Californian released a couple of EP’s in the years prior to this album release which demonstrate her talent as an artist. But it wasn’t until 2020, when the single ‘Moral of the Story’ featured in the Netflix film ‘To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You (2020)’, that she rocketed into the spotlight.
There are certain special albums out there that leave a stamp on your soul and this just might be one of them. ‘Ashlyn’, released May 7th of this year, is a vulnerable, honest and pure depiction of life. That’s a hard thing to do, but kicking off an album with a song like ‘Till Forever Falls Apart’ featuring Finneas, can only show how much this artist has to offer. Not only musically, but lyrically.
Sonically, this entire album holds a contemporary classic feel. Ranging from Carole King vibes to Kacey Musgraves during her ‘Golden Hour (2018)’ era. However, Ashe puts her own unique signature on each track; instrumental layers, lifting both her vocals and the listener into her own world. Which ultimately is what this album is about, like she’s written out her diary and recorded it for the world to hear. Each individual track has its own part in time, its own lesson learned and when listened to in order is nothing short of art.
The surface is often scratched when it comes to the topic of love in music. We’ll often hear about being in love, or being out of love. Ashe pinpoints an in between throughout this album; the friend kind of love, the love that is there but isn’t quite enough, the love that we don’t understand, the family love. The love that we wish was more. ‘Maybe When I’m Older’ shows what love can do to us. How we often look to love as a child would; something that we don’t quite understand. Bringing forth an innocence; when we tie the knot it isn’t something we expect we’ll undo. So the lyrics, “maybe when I’m six feet / underneath the concrete / I’ll know what it’s like not to want you / maybe when I’m older / I’ll know what it’s like not to love you” express this lost hopeless feeling.
The slower, piano led beat gives this song a nostalgic feel, which makes sense when we move to the next track, ‘Me Without You’. It’s as though we move from past to present as the two songs transition and find ourselves in the midst of self-discovery. This one in particular is a poetic masterpiece; the production, the vocals, the truth behind falling in and out of love. That you are whole regardless of your relationship status. “I can be me without you / you don’t believe that it’s true / go find yourself / you let me down”. The music video only further expresses the message, dancing around on broken glass and punching through doors and yet she can still dance, sing, live life just fine. There is nothing that can hold you back.
Overall, there is a thread pulling each track and story together: time. ‘Ryne’s Song’ acts as an open letter to her brother, who passed away. Another layer peeled back to release into the world, telling the heartfelt truth that we don’t know what each day will bring. A classical feel; piano, strings and honest emotion that’ll leave us pondering on how we spend our own time by its end. It leads us to ‘Kansas’, a bass led track. And this one definitely teases that there is still much more to come from Ashe and “it’s only a matter of time” till we see it. For now, we must enjoy this album and use it to appreciate what we have. How incredibly lucky this world is to be able to have artists like this making music. Full of stories that are relatable and truths that can sometimes hurt.
A reminder that the sad and difficult things in life are just as important as the good. ‘Not Mad Anymore’ is about realising you aren’t in love, but is also really reflects this entire album; “I’m not mad anymore about the madness screaming.” Sometimes we can’t control what happens in life and that’s a terrifying thing to think about. This is a reminder that time is precious and you are too. Let’s make the most of it.
Edana Graham
@ink.l.i.n.e
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