album review: 'rising' by mxmtoon
May. 20th, 2022 10:23 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
letterstonowheremy first album review! I'm glad it gets the honor of going to this incredible album, rising by mxmtoon. I've been into maia's music for a few years now. despite that, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when pressing play on this album. I had already been looping two of the previously released singles (mona lisa and sad disco), yet for some reason I was a little apprehensive when the clock hit midnight. I think it might be because during her dawn/dusk era I wasn't fully into her music. when I first got into mxmtoon's music in 2019 pre-prom dress's tiktok explosion, a lot of her songs were explorations of love and romance. these days, those kinds of themes don't resonate with me as much. I think that might be part of the reason why? I'm not fully sure. but now I feel like I need to go back to listen to those eps because I must be missing out.
anyway, I pressed play, and I was blown away during the entire 33 minutes. I'd be like "I think this is my favorite song so far", and then the next song would play and I'd say the exact same thing again. this is an incredibly diverse album. all the tracks fall under the pop umbrella, but there is so much going on! a lot of the songs do share a common theme of nostalgia and coming of age. this aspect, the lyrics, is one of the most special parts of rising to me. those themes are really prominent in my life (see: the previous blog post, that I wrote literally 2 hours before the album dropped), and this album is exactly what I needed to hear right now. maia is two years older than me, so I think that's why it resonates so strongly with me. of course, I'm dealing with college rather than a music career, but the words she sings hit me right in the heart. it felt like she had pulled the thoughts directly out of my brain and made them into music. aside from the lyrics, I think each song creates its own unique little soundscape world, which is so cool. there are so many cool instrumentals and effects, and it really immerses me as a listener.
I seriously cannot pick a favorite track, so I'll highlight just a few of my favorite parts of rising:
frown: this song blew me away. it is SO MUCH FUN! it feels so jazzy and funky and I just had an absolute blast listening to it for the first time. I think this is definitely one of the standout tracks of rising, and if it's not... well, it should be. frown is such a feel good song and there's so many fun little details and sound effects.
florida: i want to mention this one next because it comes directly after frown on the tracklist. by that, I mean we go from having a grand ol' time to sobbing uncontrollably in the span of seconds. or maybe that's just me. this song is very dear to me already, and I think it's a little difficult for me to casually listen to. in my own writing, my family's yearly florida trips to visit my grandparents is a big source of inspiration. for that reason, if you look at the lyrics you will understand how they are so incredibly relatable to me, and this is another example of "maia mxmtoon how did you get inside my brain".
learn to love you: this is the second track, and thus the first new one I had the pleasure of hearing. I mentioned that all the songs create their own little atmospheric world, and this one is a great example. the vocals and harmonies are lovely and it's just a fun and vibey song.
dance (end of the world): this song is exactly what the title implies: a dance party at the end of the world. just letting go and being free and having fun. the previous two tracks are a little slower and heavier, so this is a welcome respite. I love the "if you're lonely and you know it, then clap your hands and show it" line, followed by the pizzicato!
coming of age: the closing track of rising. this was a single release as well, but for some reason I had only really listened to it once. I think it really shines within the context of the album as a whole, though. again, as the title implies, it feels kind of like a grand finale, a goodbye to the past and a hello to whatever lies ahead. maia is so good at writing about the young adult experience and feeling lost in the grand scheme of life, which makes me so relieved to hear in her lyrics, that I'm not alone in this journey. I think this is one of my favorite things about mxmtoon, how real her music feels. these are clearly lyrics inspired by her own life, and it just feels so genuine. I've also been thinking a lot about breaking free from the confines of judgement and following your passions, and these lyrics represent exactly the mindset I aim to have one day (hopefully soon). this song makes me feel like maia is walking with me every step of the way.
this is a general comment after writing all this: I'm kind of surprised that I chose to talk mostly about lyrics. I'm a classical musician, so I am very into analyzing and picking apart song instrumentals of all genres. this album has a LOT of fantastic instrumental moments, so I somewhat figured that I would be highlighting those, but I felt like I needed to recognize how important Maia's lyrics are to me. when I was listening through the album for the first time at midnight just a few hours ago, I instantly clung onto the lyrics. of course, I was freaking out about how insanely cool the song instrumentals are because when am I not doing that. the melodies/instrumentals/production are extremely important to me because it's what makes me decide if I truly like listening to a song. so I have to say that I am obsessed with the sonic aspects of every track off rising. but also, the lyrics hit me so hard in the moment, and that's something that doesn't happen terribly often when I listen to music.
in conclusion: listen to rising! especially if you are at that weird young adult transition period age like me (and maia), I think you'll get what I mean regarding the relatability of the lyrics. this is such a fun album so check it out and support mxmtoon!
anyway, I pressed play, and I was blown away during the entire 33 minutes. I'd be like "I think this is my favorite song so far", and then the next song would play and I'd say the exact same thing again. this is an incredibly diverse album. all the tracks fall under the pop umbrella, but there is so much going on! a lot of the songs do share a common theme of nostalgia and coming of age. this aspect, the lyrics, is one of the most special parts of rising to me. those themes are really prominent in my life (see: the previous blog post, that I wrote literally 2 hours before the album dropped), and this album is exactly what I needed to hear right now. maia is two years older than me, so I think that's why it resonates so strongly with me. of course, I'm dealing with college rather than a music career, but the words she sings hit me right in the heart. it felt like she had pulled the thoughts directly out of my brain and made them into music. aside from the lyrics, I think each song creates its own unique little soundscape world, which is so cool. there are so many cool instrumentals and effects, and it really immerses me as a listener.
I seriously cannot pick a favorite track, so I'll highlight just a few of my favorite parts of rising:
frown: this song blew me away. it is SO MUCH FUN! it feels so jazzy and funky and I just had an absolute blast listening to it for the first time. I think this is definitely one of the standout tracks of rising, and if it's not... well, it should be. frown is such a feel good song and there's so many fun little details and sound effects.
florida: i want to mention this one next because it comes directly after frown on the tracklist. by that, I mean we go from having a grand ol' time to sobbing uncontrollably in the span of seconds. or maybe that's just me. this song is very dear to me already, and I think it's a little difficult for me to casually listen to. in my own writing, my family's yearly florida trips to visit my grandparents is a big source of inspiration. for that reason, if you look at the lyrics you will understand how they are so incredibly relatable to me, and this is another example of "maia mxmtoon how did you get inside my brain".
learn to love you: this is the second track, and thus the first new one I had the pleasure of hearing. I mentioned that all the songs create their own little atmospheric world, and this one is a great example. the vocals and harmonies are lovely and it's just a fun and vibey song.
dance (end of the world): this song is exactly what the title implies: a dance party at the end of the world. just letting go and being free and having fun. the previous two tracks are a little slower and heavier, so this is a welcome respite. I love the "if you're lonely and you know it, then clap your hands and show it" line, followed by the pizzicato!
coming of age: the closing track of rising. this was a single release as well, but for some reason I had only really listened to it once. I think it really shines within the context of the album as a whole, though. again, as the title implies, it feels kind of like a grand finale, a goodbye to the past and a hello to whatever lies ahead. maia is so good at writing about the young adult experience and feeling lost in the grand scheme of life, which makes me so relieved to hear in her lyrics, that I'm not alone in this journey. I think this is one of my favorite things about mxmtoon, how real her music feels. these are clearly lyrics inspired by her own life, and it just feels so genuine. I've also been thinking a lot about breaking free from the confines of judgement and following your passions, and these lyrics represent exactly the mindset I aim to have one day (hopefully soon). this song makes me feel like maia is walking with me every step of the way.
this is a general comment after writing all this: I'm kind of surprised that I chose to talk mostly about lyrics. I'm a classical musician, so I am very into analyzing and picking apart song instrumentals of all genres. this album has a LOT of fantastic instrumental moments, so I somewhat figured that I would be highlighting those, but I felt like I needed to recognize how important Maia's lyrics are to me. when I was listening through the album for the first time at midnight just a few hours ago, I instantly clung onto the lyrics. of course, I was freaking out about how insanely cool the song instrumentals are because when am I not doing that. the melodies/instrumentals/production are extremely important to me because it's what makes me decide if I truly like listening to a song. so I have to say that I am obsessed with the sonic aspects of every track off rising. but also, the lyrics hit me so hard in the moment, and that's something that doesn't happen terribly often when I listen to music.
in conclusion: listen to rising! especially if you are at that weird young adult transition period age like me (and maia), I think you'll get what I mean regarding the relatability of the lyrics. this is such a fun album so check it out and support mxmtoon!
