ALBUM REVIEW: Alexander 23 Tells Broken Heart Tales on New Album ‘Aftershock’

Alexander Glantz, better known as Alexander 23 is an artist with an impressive list of credits, and an even more impressive and ear-catching debut album. ‘Aftershock,’ an album containing heartbreakingly beautiful melodies and poetically gorgeous lyrics released on July 15th.

Filled with tracks that make the listener want to dance, cry, and express their emotions, the album opens with ‘Hate Me If It Helps,’ a song giving the singer’s ex-lover permission to hate him, if that’s what it takes for them to move on and find closure. In the second verse, Glantz asks his former love if she wonders about what he is up to now, going on to say that he still thinks of her, that he talks about missing her to his friends and writing songs about her. The album itself predominantly deals with heartbreak and the grieving process in many forms.

Track 4, ‘The Hardest Part,’ was one that I personally related to. “I guess the hardest part of getting old, is that some people that you love don’t” perfectly articulates the feeling of learning of a sudden passing within one’s community. The song goes on to describe the grieving process from the singer’s perspective, in particular detail that many of us have experienced at some point or another.

‘Cosplay’ is a groovy track that opens with guitar and drums. The electronic elements that come in later in the first verse draw the listener in, and the chorus makes them want to dance. Glantz debates whether he and his new interest should stop in their tracks before things go bad, which is a fear we often have as humans building new relationships. He states that he is seeing his ex in her, and his new girl sees her ex in him. I loved the energy in this song, sonically it sounds sure of itself, as if the writer is ready to take the risk, while the lyrics are certainly the opposite, indecisive about continuing the pursuit. 

In summary, this album is contemplative and emotion-evoking. Clocking in at 37 minutes, it is a perfect album for the workday commutes or as part of a longer road trip playlist. The album evokes so many emotions that every listener is destined to relate to at least one lyric, if not the work in its entirety.