Lenny Zenith -- He/Hymn
Veteran power pop rocker Lenny Zenith is as real it gets on his new album He/Hymn, surveying life's ups and downs while embracing us with warmth.
Lenny Zenith can craft a damn hook and on He/Hymn, he demonstrates why he's been in the rock'n'roll game for so long. In addition to being catchy, Zenith delivers a serving of empathetic, thoughtful power pop. Somewhere between Bowie and Fountains of Wayne, He/Hymn is playful, sincere – and funny as hell.
"One Of Us Should Go" opens the album with a reflection on old age and what it means to face down a time of endings, rather than beginnings. The theme continues in "Beards of Grey," which Zenith discussed with us a few weeks ago. "Pale Buras" is an impassioned longing for an absent loved one. Zenith's performance on these songs are just the right touch of wistful and forceful. These songs are moving not just for Zenith's careful poetry, but also the road-weary tone with which he delivers them.
But amidst that weariness is a sense of fondness for love and life. "Mask" asks us to fully embrace our true selves and enjoy life as we live it. "Lovely Things" embraces love while we still have it to hold on to, and even "Beards of Grey" in its nostalgia reminds us to be present for the beauty amongst hardship. Zenith achieves the near-impossible by sharing positivity while acknowledging life's rough patches. He/Hymn is as real as it gets – surveying life's ups and downs – while still feeling like a warm hug.
