With the aid of Jacob Rubeck in 2019, Nick Rattigan, 32-year-old musician released the song “Disco” under the alternative rock band Surf Curse. The track has recently amassed literally tens of millions of views, alongside another of the bands classics, “Freaks”, which both continue to flourish under its social media presence.
While his band’s biggest hits continue to trend on social media and amass literally millions of views, Rattigan’s solo work seems to only scale-down in scope.
After two incredibly deterring albums (“LOVE+POP” and “LOVE+POP Pt.2”), the sound of Nick’s solo project, Current Joys, has again transformed in the album East my Love.
The album begins with “Echoes of the Past”, a song representing the genre centered in the album, being alternative folk music. A sound consisting of hushed acoustic guitar and lolling violin, many would say “Echoes of the Past” fails to carry the familiar energy of Current Joys. Although it’s an intro track, it only serves to make way for the next song in the album, California Rain.
Instantly the album’s highlight, “California Rain” portrays a powerful energy, in-part to its intense drumming, memorable, hair-raising guitar melody and powerful lyrics. California Rain is a glimmer of hope, a portrayal that Rattigan can go for this foreign genre but still carry his familiar charm in production.
But after “California Rain”, the glimmer of hope is diminished as the album dips in energy and momentum. Songs like “Oh, Sister” and “Slowly Like the Wind” drag on for a lot longer than they should and lack any momentum. This is due in-part to the simple production. Much like Nick’s original sound method, songs are structured with usually only a guitar looper, drumkit and vocals. Because of the limited ingredients, Rattigan was able to cook something quite out-of-the-box. But with “East my Love”, a lack of out-of-the-box-thinking I feel is present in some of, not all, the songs.
The album doesn’t regain momentum until “Feelin’ Groovy”, which is another highlight of the album. With more raw and personable lyrics, as well as a more familiar sound, it serves as almost a disappointing reminder of how great Current Joy’s original style was. It’s especially disappointing that “Feelin’ Groovy” is the last song in the album, concluding the story of “East my Love” before it could really take off.
Current Joy’s 12th studio album, “East my Love”, to me, represents a shift in the music industry right now. With the release of Adrianne Lenker’s album “Bright Future” only a year before, many big artists are dipping their toes into a trendy sub-genre, Alternative Folk.
But unlike Lenker, Rattigan fails to show off a fully-realized vision for this style, one that would resonate most with his audience.
There are definitely a handful of highlights throughout “East my Love”, such as “California Rain”, “Never Seen a Rose” and “Feelin’ Groovy”, but the rest of the album leaves a lot to be desired. What’s most disappointing is that unlike “LOVE+POP” and “LOVE+POP Pt.2”, “East my Love” was an extremely promising listen; I was on the edge of my seat, waiting for the album to reach its intended summit, but it never happened.
I must sound like a broken record, complaining that Rattigan’s new album just isn’t the same. Obviously, change isn’t inherently bad, but without intention, change is just change for the sake of it. I feel strongly that “East my Love” is “East my Love” for the Sake of it.
From the cinematic moments in Surf Curse’s work, to the genuine and memorable twang of Current Joys original tracks, Rattigan’s new direction simply cannot compete.
