“If I get too close, and I’m not how you hoped, forgive my Northern attitude”
Fall for me means my Spotify shifts to folk/punk/slow pop music. Noah Kahan came onto my radar from his song “Stick Season” going viral on TikTok. I knew instantly that I had to follow him on his musical journey. He soon released “Northern Attitude” and finally his album Stick Season on October 14, 2022.
“It’s just me and the curve of the valley. There is meaning on earth, I am happy”
Since its release, it has gained attention on TikTok but was mostly overshadowed by Taylor Swift’s Midnights release on October 21, 2022. His album is 14 songs long with a runtime of 55 minutes and 28 seconds. Every single song has at least one verse that sticks with you and hits right in the hometown feels. His songwriting is compelling and his voice has a perfect amount of grit and emotion to hit you where it hurts.
“I would leave if only I could find a reason”
Ok, so, who is Noah Kahan? Kahan is a 25-year-old Vermont native singer-songwriter who signed to Republic Records in 2017 and has been making music since. He has two other full-length albums, one released in 2017 and the other in 2019. He has also released two EPs and various singles. The introduction of his latest singles to TikTok gained him a greater following consisting of 624.9K followers and 12.4M likes.
“If I was empty space and you were a formless shape we’d fit”
Stick Season is all about the bittersweet feelings that come from growing up in the rural Northeastern United States, but its relatability spans further. He sings about love in such an honest and heartfelt way that reminds me of Hozier. Then he switches his narrative and gives commentary on living in one place your entire life and what that means. The push and pull of wanting to leave the place you grew up in but not wanting to face the changes is so honestly portrayed in Kahan’s songs that you want to sit on the floor with the lyrics but also drive on back roads at night while listening to them.
“So I’m setting sail once again”
In an interview with Insider, Kahan said that stick season is “the time between peak foliage and Halloween and the first snow — when all the leaves are off the trees. It’s a time of transition. And it’s super depressing.” As the days get darker for longer and the chill persists past the mornings, our music tastes tend to shift with it. Feeling seen with the depressing feeling that the colder seasons bring upon us can be validating and bring that warmth back to the souls of listeners. Autumn in South Carolina looks different than autumn in the Northeast or Midwest, but the emotions that come with the season remain.
“Now I know your name but not who you are”
My favorite song is probably “New Perspective” this song touches on the ways that our childhood towns grow up as we do and sometimes become unrecognizable. I grew up in a small town where everything we needed was at least 15 minutes away from us (my high school was 30 minutes away). I left for college and came back and suddenly there is a Starbucks in the intersection by my house. It gave me the same feeling that Kahan sings about with his lyric, “the intersection got a Target and they’re calling it downtown.” There is something that shifts in your worldview when your small town becomes not so small anymore, especially when you moved away for a while. Wishing that things could go back to the way they were and getting rid of the “new perspective” perfectly captures my same feelings for the town I grew up in. You gain and lose some things when places from your childhood do, but battling with what that means for your identity is something I think we can all relate to, especially in college where most of us are away from the homes we grew up in for months at a time.
“You light a fire inside yourself. Let it burn”
I cannot recommend this album enough. Noah Kahan is a beautiful songwriter who captures emotions I did not even realize I was battling with. His voice brings tones of melancholy and nostalgia that only someone with lived experience can give. Every time I listen through the album I find more lyrics to latch onto and analyze as they all hold such strong meanings and I find myself getting lost in the melody.
Stream it on Spotify, Apple Music, and more, you will not regret it.