Brenn!’s vivid, poetic songwriting is on display with latest EP, “Upstate”
For fans of Noah Kahan, Jonah Kagen, and The Lumineers, Brenn! has quickly carved out his own space in the folk-pop world. On his second EP “Upstate”, the Alabama-based artist leans deeper into the warm, acoustic sound and honest storytelling that have shaped his music since the beginning. All but one of the six tracks were co-written with producer Sarcastic Sounds and musician Hayd, a collaboration that feels seamless and brings out some of Brenn!’s most personal work yet. Building on the momentum of his 2023 breakout single “4Runner,” this collection picks up right where his debut EP County Line left off.
“Days On End,” released last November, opens the EP and sets the tone with a nostalgic, yearning sound that carries through the rest of the project. The song is about watching someone choose a different life and not knowing if you were ever enough to make them stay. As he yells, “Do the mountains call your name louder than I did? / I screamed and I lost my voice for days on end,” the vocals and banjo give the song a restless urgency that mirrors the frustration in the lyrics of being unheard and left behind.
In “Water,” the first single released last October, Brenn! describes the feeling of losing control and faith and the struggle to hold on when everything feels like it’s slipping away. The vocals are raw and soulful, and the track feels like a desperate continuation of the first song. Next is “iwbtotsy” (short for “i wanna be the one to save you”), one of the most heartbreaking songs on the EP. It’s about wanting to help someone who’s spiraling and realizing you can’t reach them. The verses float over sparse production until the final minute, when the weight of the realization finally sets in.
That same feeling carries into “natural disaster,” which captures the chaos of a love that’s overwhelming and ultimately harmful. The melody is instantly engaging, and as the production builds behind Brenn!’s voice, the track unravels like a strom, true to its title. “Upstate” follows, fittingly the title track. It feels like the emotional climax of the EP with its lyrics about self-destructive loyalty that come through both angry and mournful. His voice is full of grief and pent-up frustration as he declares, “I’ll die here while I wait for you.”
The EP closes with “Franklin House,” released earlier this year and arguably one of the strongest songs in Brenn!’s discography. The title references a bar in Valparaiso, Indiana, the same city that inspired his older song “Valapriso.” “Franklin House” captures Brenn!’s storytelling at its most vivid and poetic. When he sings, “I will survive, but I’ll never recover / the ache comes and goes like stars with the weather,” he painfully conveys the guilt of not being able to save someone yet still feeling inescapably surrounded by them. After spending much of the EP clinging to the idea that love might be enough, the call and response in the final minute brings a cathartic sense of letting go that perfectly concludes the album and feels especially powerful when performed live.
As a whole, Upstate is an emotional, beautifully crafted collection that shows just how far Brenn! has come in such a short time. At 21 years old, Brenn! recently completed a very successful North American tour, and it’s easy to see that Upstate is just the beginning of what promises to be a long and exciting career.