NEW MUSIC: Lindsey Lomis Releases “Universe”
Photo Courtesy of Warner Records
APRIL 14, 2023 | BY ALICIA URREA
On April 14th, soul-pop Nashville-based artist Lindsey Lomis released her anticipated EP titled Universe. Within the last year, this 20-year-old singer-songwriter has gained traction with the previous release of tracks like “Simple Love” and “DAYDREAMING”. She additionally just concluded touring as a support act for Joshua Bassett on his headlining North American tour.
Universe consists of a total of five tracks, each one clearly narrating different experiences Lomis encountered within this past year or so. Every song is lyrically very storytelling, delving into themes surrounding introspection, confidence, and finding love. The first track on the EP – which also happens to be the title track – is sonically my favorite on the record. It opens with a grandiose sound effect that almost sounds like the intro of a movie; it’s an ascending synth that cuts into the meat of the song. The vocals kick in with some other instruments, the most prominent one being bass. There's also other noticeable instrumentation in the background, such as an effect that sounds like a clock ticking alongside some very subtle descendent bells. There are beautiful harmonies in the pre-chorus, with a groovy distorted guitar number in the chorus as Lomis sings about how everything essentially happens for a reason: “Damn the universe really made it work / Brought you down to earth, it’s all thanks to her / And for what it’s worth, even if it hurts / That’s a lesson learned.”
The next two songs on the tracklist were singles prior to the EP’s release, the first single being “This Time (I Don’t Wanna)” and the second being “Bad News / Good News.” Lyrically, “This Time (I Don’t Wanna)” is very introspective and vulnerable. It focuses on Lomis’ experience with bad patterns in former romantic relationships that she is afraid will manifest into the newest relationship she’s in. Within “Bad News / Good News,” Lomis takes a completely different approach and sings of how she knows she isn’t her partner’s first lover, and knows she shouldn’t be threatened by it. There’s a continuous riff in this song that is definitely an earworm that will have you coming back to listen to the track; it sounds like a couple of notes on low strings of an acoustic guitar. Additionally, I think this track is surely the one that showcases Lomis’ powerhouse vocals the most. She does a beautiful run in the chorus, and effortlessly holds out notes at the end of lines in the verses. They ring out angelically as the pre-chorus builds to a hard-hitting chorus.
The song that follows is titled “Kenny,” which is a complete 180 from the earlier tracks. It’s the most mellow piece on the record, with gentle acoustic guitar chords being strummed in staccato form as the song begins. We can also hear some echoed vocals in the background, which is Lindsey repeating the title over and over. It’s pretty simplistic in production, and can be classified as a clean acoustic track. The focus is the leading acoustic guitar, as well as Lomis’ heavenly vocals alongside it. It sonically matches and meshes very well with the lyrical theme of the song. From a personal standpoint, this sounds like something I would listen to driving down the streets of my suburban hometown. The song is very reminiscent, with little vignette moments that Lomis captures while remembering someone from her past: “Slammed the brakes, pulled into an Exxon / Was my birthday so something should go wrong.” She then wishes this person well in the chorus: “Kenny, I hope you’re well / Hope you’re fine, hope it all turned out alright.”
The final track is “Seven Days,” which is personally my favorite song on the EP. It’s a completely different vibe from “Kenny,” immediately starting with an extremely distorted guitar. As soon as Lomis’ vocals come in, they seem to effortlessly carry us all the way through the three minutes of the song. For some reason upon first listen, this particular track reminded me of the sound of summer. It’s extremely carefree in its instrumentation, and it’s definitely a dance track as the verses set you up for the extremely upbeat, bouncy chorus. Out of all five songs on the EP, “Seven Days” wholeheartedly encompasses the soul-pop genre of music that Lomis creates and has fun with. The end of the song humorously demonstrates this. We hear a wholesome moment captured in the studio, where Lomis seems to be messing around with some melodies. “Should we end it like that?” she giggles as the song comes to an end. It’s ironically an amazing close to the song and the EP, because it’s such a lively record. Leaving that goofy part in the final version of the track further showcases how much fun Lomis is, and how much fun Universe is as a whole.