Aidan Bissett Suspends Listeners in the Limbo of Love in "are we in love yet?"
Aidan Bissett takes the weight of modern relationships and distills it into something that feels effortless, even when it isn’t. "are we in love yet?" romps in the space between infatuation and clarity, moving across the floors of uncertainty, of what it means to care for someone who won’t say how they feel.
As a high-treble bass gulps in the song’s intro, Bissett lets his voice hover over sharp snare pops and clanky guitar strums, each note occupying its own pocket of space. Despite that seeming isolation, each element is given its moment to shine. The song is a fun cauldron of indie pop stew that is good, fresh, and even better reheated.
"If I'm honest / The hardest thing to do / Is pretend that I'm modest / Would you want me to bite my tongue? / And I'm so terrified / We won't get this right," Bissett falsettos, putting into play the tug of war between confidence and uncertainty that defines young relationships. He leans into restraint, letting the tension build in the spaces between words.
"I'm alive but I die when it hits / It's all the same with you," he sings, a confession doused in reverb that settles deep and stains deeper. It isn’t heartbreak, but it isn’t happiness either. It is the uncertainty that holds one at the precipice of both, what makes love the most surreal of experiences, yet the most enjoyable.
“‘are we in love yet?’ was a question I found myself asking myself anytime I had the opportunity to grow close to somebody — even if it was just a friend," confesses Bissett. "Writing this song was the first step in realizing how addicted I was to finding connection in my life.”
Re-reading texts, overanalyzing silences, mistaking a glance for something bigger than it is, Bissett bottles it all into an irresistible indie pop package. With a charismatic sincerity that grazes the dreamy bridge of the song and carries through its final swirling synth arpeggio, he delivers a message of love that feels far too real, too relevant.
Bissett is on the rise, a true artist to watch, wrestling with the realities of being young, in love, and standing at a crossroads with too many paths to take. The song ends the way it begins, lost in the question it never answers. No resolution, no grand confession, only the quiet realization that if you have to ask, you already know.
Watch the "are we in love yet?" video below:
