It is winter time in Harrisonburg, VA and regardless if you are from New England or not, it’s time you start listening to Noah Kahan.
In 2023, Noah Kahan released Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever) after making the song “Stick Season” in October of 2022. After the song’s original release, the sound was blowing up on TikTok which grew his fame exponentially.
On February 9th, 2024, Kahan released an extension of the album including a brand-new bonus song that has been teased on TikTok for months and multiple “remakes” of his original songs, with featured artists (who were Kahan’s dream collabs) Brandi Carlile and Gregory Alan Isakov.
He had released recent collaborations with Post Malone, Gracie Abrams, and Hozier before the full album release, but we are so excited to see them all together on one album alongside Lizzy McAlpine, Kacey Musgraves, and Sam Fender.
For many Noah Kahan lovers, the “older” songs are still as great as ever, but we are over the moon with all of the new collaborations. I am excited to now tell you my favorites of the new releases and why you NEED to add these to your playlist.
Number 9: Homesick Ft. Sam Fender
I must start at the bottom of this list saying that every one of these additions is spectacular. Sam Fender and his lyrics are exactly what this song needed. In “Homesick”, Kahan talks a lot about growing up in New England, and as a New England native, I was so glad to hear Fender’s line “I stare out that hallowed ocean as if to pick a fight / For the dreams my old man dreamt for me, lay on the other side”. Growing up near the water, many of my friends and I would drive to the docks in our town and just stare out waiting for something to happen. These new lyrics added something relatable, and I appreciated hearing it from Fender himself.
Number 8: Call Your Mom Ft. Lizzy McAlpine
I love Lizzy McAlpine. The way she and Kahan mesh together makes it feel like you are eavesdropping on a conversation. If you are a fan of Kahan’s music and have listened to his album as much as I have, the new version of this song makes it feel like McAlpine herself is saying “If you could see yourself like this, you’d have never tried it” and “Don’t let this darkness fool you / all lights turned off can be turned on/I’ll drive I’ll drive all night/I’ll call your mom”. And if you are a Lizzy McAlpine fan, you know how comforting it is to hear her voice acting like she is there for you in every aspect of your life.
Number 7: Paul Revere Ft. Gregory Alan Isakov
When I tell you the harmonies in this song are insane, I mean it. Isakov was one of Noah Kahan’s dream collaborations for a reason. I’m positive he knew their voices combined in harmony would be magical. “Paul Revere” was never a favorite song of mine on this album, but it sure has made its way up my rankings. Once again, this version of the song feels as though we are just hanging out with the dynamic duo, and they are telling a story of when they were younger and before they grew up. As if they were good friends growing up and know how much one another has changed. If you and your best friend have been friends forever, through all the awkward stages, I highly recommend this song.
Number 6: Dial Drunk ft. Post Malone
This rendition of “Dial Drunk” has been out for quite some time however you really can’t get sick of it, especially because Post Malone’s last album was from July 2023. Knowing Post Malone’s background and how sad his music seems to be, his verse on this song was deeply emotional. He talks about being unable to stop drinking and the last time he was in a cop car then he and Kahan harmonize to the idea that “it’s all the same anyway”. If you loved old Post Malone, you have to give it a listen.
Number 5: She Calls Me Back ft. Kacey Musgraves
For all of you still in love with a long-distance ex or your ex still blows up your phone, this is certainly the one for you. Noah Kahan and Kacey Musgraves definitely have been there because they perfectly explain the feelings of being annoyed by an ex or annoying one. In their case, Musgraves is entirely bothered by how poorly their fake relationship ended from a distance and how it pains her, but she cannot care. Kahan knows their relationship is toxic but continues to miss her so much that he thinks about calling her each day. The lyrics of this song were already relatable for many but now hearing both sides make it relatable for all.
Number 4: You’re Gonna Go Far ft. Brandi Carlile
I have three words for you. Mother and Father. Get your phone now, open it to whatever music streaming platform you have and pretend you are Noah Kahan and Brandi Carlile’s child. They will tell you that no matter what life throws at you or how crazy they were, they know you will make it out and do great things. Or if this is your freshman year at JMU, and you decided to “pack up your car” and move far away, that you are “the greatest thing [they’ve] lost” and they will be okay without you, regardless of how much they miss you. Coming from a college student who attended boarding school (by choice), this song really tugged at my heart strings and I’m sure they will tug at yours too.
Number 3: Forever
This was the song we had all been waiting for and it did not miss. Now that you have already listened to “You’re Gonna Go Far” I highly recommend closing your eyes and listening to this song on full blast (not while in the car please be safe). Kahan starts off slow and soft talking about how he wanted to be loved. He then goes on to talk about what forever means to him and how when he meets his forever, he wants to be there for them and wants them to get to know him for who he is (he does have a girlfriend). He goes on to tell amazing stories of his current relationship which is where his leaked line of the song “We can’t make rent so we window shop / in the Upper West Side / Oh my God”. This is by far the happiest and most hopeful song Kahan has ever made and we all hope his girlfriend is his true love, so we get more happy music like this.
Number 2: Northern Attitude ft. Hozier
I must warn you; this next review is 100% biased (the others were also fully my opinion but this one really needed a disclaimer). Noah Kahan has been able to put being a proud mean Englander into a single song. Even coming to JMU from the northeast, I was told multiple times how blunt I am after becoming comfortable with my close friends from VA. It is true “If you get too close / and I’m not how you hoped / forgive my northern attitude oh I was raised out in the cold”. Hozier, the man who walked so Kahan could run, was the best addition to this song anyone could ask for. When I first heard this song a couple of months ago, I wanted it to be rushing through my body. It sounds weird but as I write this my headphones are on full blast. Everything about this song is simply perfect.
Number 1: Everywhere, Everything ft. Gracie Abrams
I know you must be thinking, Isabelle, how could any song be better than the last if you wanted it coursing through your veins? Well, here is the answer, I want “Everywhere, Everything” featuring Gracie Abrams to be flowing through my tears, and for each tear down my face the music gets louder. Before “Forever” was released, Noah Kahan claimed that this song was the happiest song he had produced. This song is the definition of ending a relationship too early for some reason but both parties still hold so much love for each other. Exactly how it was written “all of our books’ pages dog eared / we write out the ends on our palms dear / and forget to read”. Gracie Abrams’s voice brings a softness to the destruction that occurs in the lyrics of this song, and I’ve never heard such a beautiful song. Plus, there are tambourines in this song, so you have to like it.
If these reviews did not make you immediately turn on “Stick Season (Forever)”, I encourage you to take a listen on your next walk from the east campus to the main or whatever routes you take to class because it truly is wonderful. Although Noah Kahan did not win “Best New Artist”, he did in our hearts, and I hope he wins yours over too.