Bailey Sessions
The Paw Print
Jon Bellion’s new album Glory Sound Prep was released on November ninth of this year. His previous album, The Human Condition is best known for the song “All Time Low.” Although Apple Music describes his music as pop, that doesn’t seem particularly fitting. His style is a mixture of electronic and alternative.
Glory Sound Prep is a fun and funky album. One of the best parts about it is all the songs sound very different, but it’s still obvious that they’re all children of Jon Bellion’s brain. The first track, “Conversations with my Wife,” is easily one of my favorite songs on the album. It starts out very soft, with romantic undertones and creates a calming energy. This song focuses on two different ideas: the internet can drown reality, and love is based on more than just an electronic domain. The second track, “JT”, starts out soft as well. As the chorus gets closer, the percussion gets a bit more intense and the beat jumps around a little. This song is sweet, as Bellion is addressing his success and talent to more than just hard work, but to higher powers as well.
The third track, called “Let’s Begin” (feat. Roc Marciano, RZA, B.Keyz & Travis Mendes), is a bit different than the first two. It doesn’t start out as soft and gentle electronic; it starts with symphonic tones and rap, but it’s not hard rap. As a matter of fact, it almost seems as Bellion got inspiration for this song from the artist NF. This song also contributes success more to hard work than higher powers, but still addresses both. “Stupid Deep,” the fourth track, is another one of my favorites in this album. It switches back to the soft and calming energy of the first track. The song focuses on the idea that humanity searches for love and affirmation in everything because the holes in people’s hearts are deep and need to be filled somehow.
As the album nears the fifth track, it starts to get upbeat. At least in the sense of the music itself. The lyrics of the song “The Internet” imply that fame is dangerous. The next track, Blu, is very percussion and synth based. It’s about embracing yourself. The seventh track, “Adult Swim” (feat. Tuamie), is gentle rap. The song is about how life changes as you get older; as people age, they switch from watching Nickelodeon to watching Adult Swim.
“Couples Retreat,” which is the eighth track, is very electronic. The song is about fixing love while preserving your personality. With the ninth track, “Cautionary Tales,” the music is low-key, with just guitar and synth. It’s about rumours and how you can’t prove them unless you’ve experienced where they originate from firsthand. The final track, “Mah’s Joint” (feat. Quincy Jones), is soft and melancholy. It’s about how life doesn’t always turn out the way you think it will.
Overall, this album is amazing. It helps you see life the way it really is. Considering life is often portrayed as perfect, it helps to get a realistic perspective.
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