The Newest Noise for Your Listening Pleasure! | By Nicholas Senior
Proper.
Brooklyn, New York
I Spent the Winter Writing Songs About Getting Better | July 26 | Big Scary Monsters
RIYL: Exoduses. Dunking on Redditors. Polite middle fingers.
Pick up I Spent the Winter Writing Songs About Getting Better HERE!
Thank god Erik Garlington got the fuck out of the Bible Belt. Otherwise, fans might not have been gifted with the most passionate and endearing alt-rock album in years. Proper. tug on preconceived notions of Black identity, punk identity, queer identity, religious identity, and the ways they’re allowed to intersect, and I Spent the Winter Writing Songs About Getting Better perfectly encapsulates the honest optimism Garlington excels at—even if that’s a newfound mental state. Despite past hardships, Proper. 2.0 are buoyant. “I wanted to show that people can always grow and change and that that isn’t a bad thing,” the vocalist and guitarist says. “The me that wrote the first record hated where he was in life and felt like he’d be alone forever. Some of those songs I wrote at 22 when I was at my most angry. I’m 28 now. The person that wrote this record is married, finally found a loving friend group, and has a family in his bandmates. I want people to listen to this record and feel hopeful about their future.” Garlington gets his wish. Proper. don’t play sappy or sullen tunes. Instead, their widescreen approach allows the full spectrum of life to present itself, resulting in a fantastic album that makes you want to get better too.
