Going through heartbreak has to be one of the most painful things in the universe, but what if there was an alternative to going through it but had the same feeling? “Smithereens” is Joji’s third studio album and although the album might be short, it’s still an amazing album that I keep going back to even though it was released a couple of years ago.
Joji’s sound is more experimental but that doesn’t mean that the music is bad; it’s quite the opposite as the music has a sad but slow vibe, and at other times, the music can pick up and the beats are perfect. Although this album is short with only nine songs, most of them, if not all, are amazing to listen to. If I had to choose five songs that I found captivating I would have to pick “Glimpse of Us”, “Die for You”, “NIGHT RIDER”, “YUKON (INTERLUDE)”, and lastly “1AM FREESTYLE”.
“Glimpse of Us” is the first track on this record and it is a great opening to the album. It gives you a quick sneak peek of what the album is going to sound like and make you feel. This song is about not being able to let go of someone that you are no longer with and trying to look for them in other people but to no avail. The lyrics and the way Joji sings this track are heavenly and the piano that is used fits the song perfectly.
“Die for You” is the third track on this album and I will say, that this song killed me internally with how depressing the lyrics and overall production were. This track sees Joji post-breakup from a past relationship and even though it never worked out, he wishes nothing but the best for his past love interest. Once again as I said with “Glimpse of Us”, the production is amazing with the soft instrumental and the vocals perfectly fitting with the theme of this song.
“NIGHT RIDER” is the sixth track on this album and it is the start of the album’s second side. This track sees Joji and his current love interest being together. The only problem is Joji is always looking for adventure in his life but his lover is the complete opposite, and instead of Joji trying to be understanding, he decides to be selfish and do things his way, and on his terms. The lyrics are the main thing that captivated me mainly because of one line that he repeats in the middle and toward the end of the song. In the middle and toward the end of the song, he repeats the phrase, “I’m too precious”. At first, I thought that Joji was signifying that he was precious as in perfect but after listening to this track, I realized that he is saying that he is precious in the way that he is fragile and doesn’t want to get broken.
“YUKON (INTERLUDE)” is the eighth track on this record and at first, I didn’t find this track too interesting but after listening to it and trying to get a deeper understanding of the lyrics and just listening to the production in general, I’ve grown to appreciate this track. This track involves Joji distracting himself by driving around in a variety of vehicles so he doesn’t think about his past relationships and he can focus on something else instead.
“1AM FREESTYLE” is the ninth and final track on this record and it is by far the most haunting finale in an album that I have listened to. This track seeks Joji to lose hope in trying to fix his past relationship and learn to accept that there is no repairing it, he has to move on and there is nothing that he can do. As I said above, this has to be the most haunting finale of an album with the album ending off with the line “I don’t want to be alone”. The music cuts off and it is pure silent afterward which represents that Joji has moved on, even if he was forced to.
This album was a joyride to listen to and I still listen to it quite a bit because it holds up well with some of the music released today. People do hate this album quite a bit because of how short it is but I feel that it’s the perfect length and it captures the whole aspect of being in denial about your past lover moving on, trying to move on, and wishing them nothing but the best, and then relapsing those feelings. The production was done perfectly and every track felt good to listen to because of how well the melody and overall production was. I would `recommend this record and maybe more of Joji’s other projects too.
