Indie Light

STEVENSTEVEN is a musical collaboration between American musician and former host of Blue’s Clues, Steve Burns and Steven Drozd, an American multi-instrumentalist, composer and songwriter, who is associated with The Flaming Lips and Electric Würms just to name a few. I’ve reviewed the previous collaborations between this pair, namely Songs for Dustmites and Deep Sea Recovery Efforts which you can check out here and here respectively so I’m really excited to hear this entry. Speaking of which, today I’ll be reviewing ‘Foreverywhere’ which was released on February 24th 2017. 

‘The Unicorn and Princess Rainbow’ kicks things off with acoustic guitars and electronic melodies that build and flow with the vocals, which are melodic but have the right enough of weight to them. This is a strong opening track, a balanced energy, and a nice harmony of vocals that work perfectly. Having reviewed the previous collaborations between the pair it’s really interesting to see their development as artists, as they tackle this very different project. I particularly liked the intense blaring guitars as the tracks progressed, a nice counterpoint from the acoustics, the result is something that has melodic and soft, and more vibrant and punchy sections. 

‘Mimic Octopus’ kicks off with bouncy, bass driven beats, strings infusing the melody creating a very dynamic track, light percussion adding texture to the melody, and the vocals have a synth augmented component, but create a really engaging vibe. I’d already listened to the album a couple times before sitting down to review it, and while it’s designed with children in mind, harkening back to Steve Burns’s time on Blue’s Clues it doesn’t pander, it’s not bucolic or just random wackiness, It’s a coherent, interesting and a genuine series of solid musical adventures. 

‘A Fact is a Gift That You Give Your Brain’ is high energy, acoustic guitars and electronic bass that hammer forward, a solid momentum that adds some extra weight to the vocals. I really like this track. It’s not just the energy, although that itself is catchy and could easily command your attention, it’s the sincerity to the track. I touched on it above, but this is obviously a genuine effort to make something that kids would enjoy. It’s got some solid drum work, and incredibly good vocal segments. I think on reflection this might be my favourite track on the album. It’s just a really good song, and it’s very learning positive which I also enjoy. 

‘OK Toilet Bowl’ is another energetic track, it kicks up with applause and some more direct vocals set against an upbeat melody. This is a little goofy and this very much captures that Blue’s Clues energy, it’s wholesome and vibrant and fun. I said before that the tracks don’t pander, and this doesn’t either, I’ll admit it’s very much what you’d expect to find on a kid’s show but equally it’s so positive and nice, and it has a nice melody, who knew a song about poop could be so good. Big fan of the poo haiku by the way. 

‘Space Rock Rock’ has some stellar guitars opening up, heavy and blaring, a distortion, backed up by some killer drums, the cacophonous frenzy of intense instrumentals harmonising and battling in equal measure. I love the slower, more measured vocals, the result is a solid counterpoint and you just get drawn into the performance. I like that just because this is aimed at kids doesn’t mean it can’t rock. It’s just a superb blend of educational content, and absolute god tier instrumental jamming. 

‘The Lonely Unicorn is Never Giving Up!’ is another high energy number, the percussion creating a solid backdrop, and the vocals are some of the best on the entire album, they inject depth and emotion into the track, and you just get caught up in the narrative. The instrumental backing does really serve this track well though, it keeps the energy up throughout the song, and flows up and down as required to create a well balanced performance. 

‘If You’re Ginormous and You Know It’ is another goofy track, it shows that the duo aren’t afraid to be a little silly, I think finding the balance between taking themselves and the music seriously, even though it’s intended for a younger audience, and being able to have fun because of that is a really thing to find. It’s also something they succeed at continually throughout the album. Following closely behind ‘A Fact is a Gift That You Give Your Brain’, this is probably another solid favourite on the album. It’s also a solid comedic interlude, in the vein of Tenacious D or Ninja Sex Party, which I’ve always enjoyed. 

‘I Won’t Let You Change Who I Am’ is softer and more melodic, coming on the heels of the previous track it’s somewhat jarring but nonetheless it’s incredibly strong, it enforces positivity and a good self image. It’s also an incredibly good song, strong guitar and percussion, and light and rhythmic vocals all really come together to create a great entry on what has been a superb album. 

‘The Happy Then Sad Then Triumphant Spider’ opens up with an electronic melody that works off the itsy bitsy spider tune, but adds and extrapolates from that melody to create something unique and interesting on its own. I’ll admit to being slightly…TERRIFIED of spiders, but even from that point of view I’m still hopeful for the spider to succeed, and as you go on a musical journey over the 6 minutes and 36 seconds, you’re really engaged in the narrative. I honestly think this song has so much heart and substance, that even though it’s longer than all the other entries I was genuinely engrossed. 

‘I’m Up’ is another more melodic tune, softer electronic beats flow, the sleepy quality, the atmospheric vibes throughout make for a really interesting overall track. I love that the vocal delivery comes across like someone talking quiet, like a stage whisper, and occasionally the yawns and snores which all add to the performance. I also love that despite the more theatrical elements, and the overall message of the song, about getting out of bed, it’s still such a good track, I mean the guitars on this one especially were phenomenal. I especially love how they built towards the end, a growing, thrumming momentum, as the song reaches its climax. 

‘Foreverywhere’ is a truly sensational track that closes out an incredibly strong album, the sonorous tonal quality of the melody is almost lullaby-like in nature, and the percussive beat beneath is almost a heartbeat. It also tells a rich and evocative and yet bittersweet story. The duo, both steves, Steve and Steve as it were, are so phenomenally talented, both separately and in collaboration, and there hasn’t been a misstep this entire album, culminating in this powerful track that is sure to stick with you long after it finishes. It clocks in at just over 10 minutes by man is it worth it, the guitar work, the percussion, they all come out to play, and add depth and vibrancy to the track. Burn’s vocals especially work well within the context of this track, almost spoken word, soft and gentle, it’s the ideal vocal cadence for the story. 

So that’s what I thought of STEVENSTEVEN’s album ‘Foreverywhere’ and if you want to check that out for yourself then head on over to Spotify.