All Day Gentle Hold! is the newest album by the New York based musician Aaron Maine’s indie rock project Porches. This is the fifth studio album and was released October 8th, about a year and a half ago since Maine’s last project, Ricky Music, which was released to generally favorable reviews.
The album opens up to a good start with their song Lately, which while not their best of the album, still serves as a fitting intro into their synth pop vibe. With this album, Maine seems to explore themes that feel slightly personal, about young heartbreak (I Miss That), the reality of growing up into the adult world (Okay) and even nostalgia for childhood. However these timely and relevant themes are undermined by a sometimes basic sound in the project’s synth pop genre; which feels basic and poorly done. Compared to the band’s other work, this one feels underdone and not as good as Maine’s previous work.
Still though, what we get is a nice fun album with timely themes that today’s young adults will easily relate to. One such example would be the song Back3School. In the song, Aaron Maine sings about how life was much more simpler and carefree during his school days; and although he has flashes of love for his family and present day life, he still wishes to return back to when he was young and all he had to worry about was just going back to school. The title itself is a play on for the phrase, “Back 2 School” indicating that he’s going back to school (as he says throughout the song), sort of like a sequel.
Overall, All Day Gentle Hold! isn’t a work of art or may not be an album you would put on at a house party or a crowded event, but it still makes for a smooth and engaging listen to just kick back and relax to, and hearing a voice that understands the melancholic and more downside to having to grow up and leave your childhood behind.
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