Indie Light

Shelby Merry is incredibly talented, and as such wears many hats, for a start she’s the author of the engaging science fiction novel Second Planet. She was one of the composers for the TBS and later Adult Swim animated Sci-fi comedy series, Final Space and most relevant to why we are here today, she’s also a singer/songwriter and musician. As you can tell, I’m a huge fan, and so we’ve covered Merry before on Indie Light, and if you’re interested you can click here to read more.

If you have read any of my previous reviews of her work, you’ll know that I absolutely adored ‘Gallows’ from her November 2013 album ‘Young Guns’. So I was incredibly excited to discover that to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the original album’s release, she has re-recorded the full album, and that’s what we are here to discuss today, ‘Young Guns X’ which was released November 17th 2023.

‘Before the Storm X’ opens with light, lilting guitars, which builds an atmospheric building melody, richly textured and imposing in a way that evokes the storm, referenced in the title. As always I’m blown away by Shelby’s phenomenal vocals. Her voice is deep and powerful and holds an incredible weight behind it. There are too few artists that can match the brevity and poignancy of Merry, and I’m just glad to be along for the ride with this album. 

‘Steady and Stronger X’ has faster, harder guitars, turning the string instrument into a pseudo-percussive one. The vocals again are richly layered and transcendent, the harmony between playing and singing, just a vibrant dance that breathes life back into you. Despite the heavier start this balances out into a more steady mid Tempo, and the melody fleshed itself out. I love the balance of the acoustic vocal harmonies, again the directly performed singing parts, plus the organ that breezes in at the end was wonderful, adding just a little extra spice before finishing up. 

‘Gallows X’ is everything I wanted from the re-recording, somehow different from the original and the Final Space Soundtrack version, and yet it has that almost nebulous quality that makes it one of my favourite song. The acoustic guitar does a phenomenal job just on its own, but the striking piano chords and the overall atmospheric tones create a powerful melodic structure. It’s honestly breathtaking and I’m not just saying that because I’m into day four of the flu. But seriously though since I first heard it this song has been important to me, and this new recording is just perfect. Thank you Shelby. 

‘Civil Warfare X’ opens with a flurry of piano chords that build upon one another, just simple and beautiful, amazing on their own but equally perfectly supporting Shelby’s vocals when they join the mix. This was another personal highlight from the original album and I’m glad to see it’s only gotten better as well. I love the addition of another voice, they mesh incredibly well together adding diversity and enhancing the overall melody. 

‘Lullaby X’ another quick burst of piano music that flows outwards, building and blending, this captures the unique cadence and quality of a music box Lullaby without directly sounding like one. It’s really well done and you kind of just get lost in the melody, which feels bittersweet and soft like those old tunes do. This is totally instrumental, but adds so much to the substance of the album as a whole.

‘Manhunt X’ especially after the last track, this is a little jarring, the almost dreamy instrumentals bursting into this frenzied, guitar heavy performance but its so cool. You feel Merry’s passion and energy light up throughout the track. I love the percussive clapping, blending into the melody. I really like this track, and the energetic guitars throughout are a true highlight. 

‘Break Your Heart X’ brings back the gorgeous piano playing, soft striking chords building up a deep melody that supports Shelby’s amazing voice. This song just feels sad, not in a bad way, in the most wonderful way. Merry perfectly captures the moment, the pains and depth of emotion and portrays it perfectly. 

‘Dancing Bones X’ has a big theatrical build, dramatic and fantastic in equal measures, piano layered underneath a bigger ambient melody, which then fades out leaving just the pure piano, before the vocals kick in again. A truly stellar performance in an album already jam packed with amazing tracks. 

‘Young Gun X’ softer, slower after the big intro of the previous track and yet with a deep building melody that captures you instantly, I’m amazed by how each track can be so different and yet have this internal theme or cadence that links them all together. This is another favourite from Merry’s discography and I’m amazed by how it has all the flavour of the original and yet is vital and necessary in its own right.

‘Mark the Spot’ closes off what has been,  a truly exceptional release, the guitars flow in and fill you up, and again, without overstating it, Merrys voice is so pure and perfect, it’s like a light in the proverbial darkness. This was the ideal track to finish the album, a little bit of new, as this wasn’t featured on the original release, against the older hits. It’s a great track though, some of the strongest, most emotional vocals in an album packed full of emotive performances. 

So that’s what I thought of Shelby Merry’s album ‘Young Guns X’ and if you want to check that out for yourself then head on over to Spotify. While you’re at it, why not show support for the artist by following them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to check out Merry’s store, for some awesome merch as well.