For anyone partial to the baritone brooding of Pennsylvania musician Daughn Gibson, this new one might come as a bit of a revelation. On the musician’s initial tracks, like 2012’s “Lite Me Up” and “Reach Into the Fire” (the lead single from his 2013 sophomore LP for Sub Pop), his voice was an immediate identifier—nearly no one in recent memory possesses that kind of register and uses it to that effect.
On his brand-new single, “Shatter Me Through,” Gibson’s lost the gothic, plunging twang but kept the talent for mixing genres and samples. “Light” was hardly the first (or second or third) thing to come to mind when encountering his music or voice in the past, but here it is: a brisk, impressive new track with swift strings, tinkling piano keys, and a quick-paced Gibson demonstrating a keen grasp on pop’s best offerings.
The future is here and now, and it’s on repeat.
Gibson’s new record, Carnation, will be out June 2 on Sub Pop.
