New York’s Soren Song has spent the past few years on a journey of self-discovery. With I’m, their newest release, we are graced with a song cycle of exploration and self-actualization. “Man the Wheel” characterizes this journey as one of acceptance and grace. As smooth as the album’s piano pop sounds, though, there are rough edges here.
The album hinges on “Gentle Man,” a hostile interrogation of masculinity. Here, Song’s self-assurance gives way to anger, the ballad resolving with Song spitting its title like a curse. This is where I’m really picks up speed, with a rush of excitement as our narrator delves into their newfound freedom from social expectations.
“Us” is a dream love song that flouts these conventions. Song, with their world-worn rasp, sings “I’ll be your woman/you’ll be my man” comfortingly, embracing the folly of social norms. Unfortunately, it’s not so easy to escape that pull, as they sing in the frenetic “Gravity Is For Suckers.”
When Song lets us down gently at the end of the journey, we have a sense of a completion: whatever comes to pass will do so, but in the meantime, things are settled for now — and that’s a good place to be.
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