“Fainted Love” by Conan Gray, Saturday, October 19, 2024
Conan Gray’s Found Heaven is possibly one of the most under-rated albums of the year. The pop world of 2024 is dominated by powerful women and so is rock and alternative. Looking at the list of albums this year, there is one big one that seems overrated—Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets’ Department—but every single artist with a big year, Swift included, has earned it. But with all of the big pop artists this year, Conan Gray hasn’t yet had a breakthrough moment. Found Heaven is far from a perfect album but its post-punk style and Gray’s conviction in songwriting make this one of the albums I keep coming back to all year.
DON’T MEAN THAT YOU’RE MARRYING ME TONIGHT. Part of Conan Gray’s conviction to his sound, I feel, is a reason why Found Heaven isn’t a bigger pop album, and maybe why it isn’t as good as it could be. Gray doesn’t do many collaborations and he explained that he felt that his latest album is complete. I feel that a well-chosen collaboration could have brought more fans to discover Gray’s music and could have made the album’s middle section more memorable. The middle tracks on the album are very well-written and the album keeps a consistency to it; however, some of the songs feel like they are missing an edge. And not all of the collaborators have to be singers. Solidly in the post-punk landscape, Gray’s album could use a little more length with its instrumentals. I’d love to hear a few guitar solos on the album—maybe a saxophone. Take for example the non-single “Fainted Love.” The song is the third track on the album after two very different sounding tracks, the title track and the single “Never Ending Song.” The album’s third track stands out from the other tracks because it is the first occurance of ‘80s synth pop meets post punk. The song’s synths opening arpeggio paints a dark landscape similar to Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer,” setting Gray’s song on a “ghost town on a Saturday night.”
IT’S ENOUGH TO SURVIVE. “Fainted Love” shows a possibility for a niche that Conan Gray could fill: glam rock post punk rock pop star. Vocal cracks show earnestness in personal lyrics about a lover who is not at their best due to untold personal problems. Gray doesn’t care about that, though, resolving that “Fainted Love” is enough. The song is one of the best on the album, but I think it also highlights a problem with the album—Gray’s lack of commitment to rock and ultimately contemporary pop styles that would sell the album to either audience. I wish that the song had a Journey-style guitar solo. The 2:51 song feels like it needs more room to breathe. In fact, all of the songs on the album are short, the longest one is the closing ballad “Winner” clocking in at 3:37. In the age of Tik-Tok sound clips so many songs are cut short. With so many songs released every year, keeping songs short may help listeners with short attention spans to get through more tracks; however, there seems to be a missed opportunity for listeners to immerse themselves and live in the songs. While Gray has finished the album and has moved on to a new chapter, I would certainly like a reimagined or deluxe edition.
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