![]() ![]() From Solar Power to Sky Blue Sky, there’s plenty of precedent for the lower-key, sun-worshipping album that immediately follows an artist’s most personal effort, the one that nearly crushed them and was widely hailed as a masterpiece. Ultimately, that makes Far In feel a little less ambitious than the past few Helado Negro albums (despite its beefy 68-minute runtime and stacked roster of collaborators, including Kacy Hill and William Tyler) if still the right move for Lange at this moment. The moments with a lighter pulse (like the fingerpicked “Wind Conversations,” which perfectly evokes lying in shady grass) or almost none at all (“Aguas Frías,” a beautifully accentuated drone on thornier themes of fragile memory and lost love) are more ripe to crack open and explore than the dance tracks, which offer little in the way of mystery, and even stick out at times. “Gemini and Leo,” meanwhile, dials it up to near-anthem size and loses some of that magnetic intimacy that Lange does so well, like a stick of watermelon gum that blasts flavor for a few minutes then goes bland.įar In still has its fair share of range, but there are fewer songs that feel like he's flipping parts around, or opening up a hidden door. “Outside the Outside” is the best example, a silent-rave shuffle that quietly pulls you in it sounds like it’s coming up through the floorboards, a song that you’ll only hear if you crouch low. With the help of Trammell and a clutch of guest drummers, Lange shows that even his disco-inflected songs can still be tactile and rewarding in headphones-albeit some more than others. The prominent drumming of Jason Trammell has a lot to do with that: He’s a consistent presence, always drawing attention but never loud, manipulating his hi-hat and muted snare to keep it interesting. Lange has always had a delicate touch, but the general breeziness here is different. Lange may not have felt as carefree as he sounds on these 15 chilled-out tracks, but they seem like signposts, like a target state of mind more than a revealing self-portrait. ![]() The aesthetics are much more even: steady, mellow, comforting. It doesn’t tell as complex of a story, but you’re more than happy to hang out in the sun for a while and enjoy his company. If This Is How You Smile was the complete house tour of Lange’s psyche, Far In is more like an afternoon barbeque in the backyard. ![]() His priority today seems to be, to quote his first words on Far In, “Wake up tomorrow.” On his new double album, Far In, he doesn’t sound quite so concerned with the artistic “step forward” as with healthier steps. A long tour behind the album broke him down-just in time for a pandemic, his 40th birthday, and a move to North Carolina after a decade and a half in Brooklyn. But then there are the years where self-actualization is secondary to simply remaining alive and well, and these times found Lange shortly after releasing This Is How You Smile. ![]()
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January 2023
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