glaive Grows Up in 'Y'all' But Remains the Same Pop Disruptor
Florida-born, North Carolina-based musical juggernaut glaive makes his return with his highly anticipated new album, Y'all. The record marks the young artist's evolution into a fully mature sound, showcasing him at his most personal while continuing to disrupt and challenge the parameters of pop. Across sixteen tracks, listeners follow the story of a teenager pulled up from his roots, finally returning to his hometown in North Carolina at 20 as a radically changed person in an unchanged place.
"I realized that it wasn't the place that I had the problem with, it was myself," glaive shares in a statement. "I wanted more, and the more I got, the less I felt I had. With this move came a lot of time to think: about myself, about others, about everything. I sort of came to the conclusion that perhaps the classic musician 'lifestyle' wasn't for me. I didn't derive enjoyment from the 'lifestyle' that making music can offer. It sounds quite silly but I was raised here and maybe I'll die here."
"As I got older, I realized my flaws and the flaws of the ones I love. This album is called Y'all because at its inception, I wanted it to be less about me - and somewhere in that process, I think it became the most 'me' album I've ever made."
The album opens with back-to-back singles, "Asheville" and "Appalachia." These two tracks serve as a powerful introduction to the album, setting the stage for the personal journey that follows. The former blasts open with a beat that kicks in like teeth hitting concrete. It captures the painfully relatable experience of growing pains, even through the lens of extraordinary circumstances. Reflecting on his past in the verses, he confronts himself in the chorus; the outro hears him flaunting his better self, notably shouting out his closest friends while putting his past behind him. Meanwhile, the following track is a Euro-trance-inspired effort that features a pulverizing bassline and a matrix of twinkling, glittering synthesizers. This oscillating relationship of tension and release coats the lyrics, which detail glaive's reflections on his success and journey.
There are a plethora of gems on this album, including personal favorite "Veni Vidi Vici," the reggaeton-infused "Nouveau Riche," which was written with pride, as he felt that nothing was ever handed to him, the sugar rush tones of "Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying," and the mind-melting and experimental "Foreigner." Y'all marks glaive's most dance-driven, maximalist work to date.
The album closes with the forlorn "Bennie & Kay." The finale is an ode to the loss of his grandparents in the space of a year, and the anchors of familiarity and comfort that come with growing up. In the track, glaive takes responsibility for selfishly wanting his grandmother to stay with him in the land of the living, but admits that his grandfather deserves to see her more in the afterlife. He also wishes to make his father proud and, in its chorus, he depressingly exclaims, "I wish I knew if it was better upstairs / Is there a bedroom up there?" closing the track with a tear-jerking snippet of Bennie speaking, "To you, Kay / To my family, and to all my friends in polo / Which has been my lifeblood for half a century / I thank you for honoring me tonight."
Y'all is a journey that never rests, battling the unique discomfort of returning to comfort as a changed person against a backdrop of some of the most adventurous pop and electronic production we have heard all year. Its unpredictability is what makes it an undeniably memorable sonic experience from start to finish. Riddled with themes of self-reflection, hometown roots, and personal growth, this album is an essential must-listen for anyone navigating their own journey of change and discovery.
Listen to Y'all below:
