An artist named Zach Bolen from Citizens reflected on how often we don't stop and sit with a piece of art. With his permission, we have reposted his insight and plea. If he can stop and revisit an old album, would we also stop and revisit his?
"about a year ago i decided that i was going to start listening to records all the way through at least twice in a row. with all the time, money and energy that goes into making a record i just wanted to give each artist i was listening to the chance to be heard. the process of making a record is a massive undertaking and so i can tell you that when people take the time to really sit with what you've made, it's deeply gratifying. it's easy to write something off when we don't allow it the space to live in our heads and even more so, our hearts. you see, the thing that i find more often than not as i listen all the way through an album is that there are actually a lot of great records out there that in the past i would have skipped over because at first glance they didn't have the thing i was looking for. even as i'm typing this i'm revisiting one of those records that i had decided wasn't that great and after 3 listens i'm in love. lesson learned: let the art breathe and be open to surprise we hear people all the time saying things like "nobody listens to full albums anymore" or "i only listen to singles." and while for many people that's true, it's certainly not been the case for you and so many of the people out there in the world listening to our music. since the beginning we've always been putting our best foot forward and making music that speaks to us, knowing full well that if it's true for us, it must be true for somebody out there. somebody like you. we're a little over a month in to "i can't find the edges of you" being out and the response has been quite humbling. so many have sent the kindest messages to let us know how much this record means to them; people who have listened through "icfteoy" 2, 3, even 15 times. if you are one of those people, thank you for letting this one breathe. if you haven't had the chance, today's your day:) zach (on behalf of citizens)"
LISTEN HERE (the new album by Citizens, I can't find the edges of you)
