There are many pleasantly surprising and pleasing things about this new full-length from Lonely Benson. First and foremost, it’s an upbeat, bright, sunny record from a new artist with an incredibly slick production.
Secondly, and no less important, the album was written to be intentionally positive. It started as a Kickstarter campaign from multi-instrumentalist Daniel Young with this synopsis: “These days, even the news is enough to give you a nervous breakdown. That’s why I’ve set out to create music that helps people CHILL.” What could be read as naive optimism actually comes through in spades throughout the record. Young sought to create songs that were “groovy and laid back but also just casual and relaxing” and absolutely nailed that vibe.
If you’re a fan of Toro Y Moi, you’ll probably feel at home here. The smooth production and languid songwriting lends itself to be the perfect backdrop of sitting in a hot place and chilling the fuck out. It’s the respite we deserve.