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Photo: Lindsay Ellary

Exuberant pop is back and being ushered in by 20-year-old rising star, Isaac Dunbar. In his first release in two years, the Rhode Island-born singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer throws an open invitation rager in “Apartment A.” The track oozes with energy, pulling inspiration from multiple genres and eras of music history. It’s bold and self-assured, serving as is Dunbar's proclamation that subtlety is overrated and overused.

There’s magic in dancing in a crowded club with strangers, but there’s something especially intimate about moving the party to a small, crowded apartment. Specifically “Apartment A,” where energy is conjured and expelled in ways that even Gatsby himself could never replicate. The track cherishes small details of the classic “going out” experience, crowding the fire escape and snapping polaroids before heading to the club, but “Apartment A” is where the magic really happens.

Dunbar naturally invokes the sonic spirit of 70’s classic rock, 80’s dance-pop, 90’s grunge, and more, belying his age time and time again. On the inspiration behind “Apartment A”, the rising star says the track “is about creating fame within yourself, seeing yourself as an icon. A complete opposite of insecurity.” Being from a generation that often creates art with heavy themes of self-doubt and uncertainty, Dunbar takes a radically positive approach. As he proclaims, “I wanna lose my wallet and kiss the bitch who stole it,” listeners are reminded that life is as serious as you make it so you may as well dance it all away.

With a theatrical grandiosity in his vocal delivery, “Apartment A” is filled with extremely sharp songwriting. It’s creative, visual, and downright hilarious. The half-sarcastic, half-extremely sincere camp of lines like “Something about this place is high vibration / Like a new religion,” are worth obsessing over. The bridge is a memorable moment, where we hear Dunbar scatting his heart out and telling a story through the pure exhibit of sound.

"Apartment A" is an unparalleled exhibition of imagination and originally, teasing a new musical era for Dunbar and leaving us in not so hushed anticipation for what 2024 has in store for the rising star and us.

Watch the "Apartment A" video below: