Noah Kahan, best known for hits like “Stick Season,” “Northern Attitude” and “You’re Gonna Go Far,” released his first major studio album in four years on Friday, titled “The Great Divide.”
The 17-track album is a balance between who Kahan was before his rise to fame and his newfound status as a well-known artist. Other reviews have labeled this album as a predecessor to Kahan’s 2022 album release “Stick Season.” There are definitely specific songs on this album that remind me of the “Stick Season” tracks.
The album showcases themes such as home, sobriety and family trauma. Kahan also released an extended version of the album on Saturday.
The extended album has 21 tracks and is titled “The Great Divide: The Last of the Bugs.” It also features new songs titled “Lighthouse,” “Staying Still,” “A Few Of Your Own” and “Orbiter.”
“THE GREAT DIVIDE”
This song, released as one of the singles on Jan. 30, is the most popular one from the album, with over 115 million streams already on Spotify.
This song, like “Porch Light,” is about the gap or “divide” between Kahan’s past life in small-town Vermont and to his new life as a successful artist. This song also paints themes of religious trauma, especially with a line in the chorus that states “And not your soul, and what he might do with it.”
As the song goes on, it showcases the guilt that Kahan feels for not being there for his friend who may have been struggling with mental health issues, particularly in the lyrics, “And I’m finally aware of how s— and unfair / It was to stare ahead like everything was fine.”
“PORCH LIGHT”
This song was also released as a single on March 13 and is also pretty popular with over 60 million streams on Spotify already. If there is any song from this release that sounds like the “Stick Season” album, it’s this one.
From the beginning of the song, the instrumentals sound pretty similar to the song “Stick Season.” Although these two songs are about different things, the music sounds similar. “Porch Light,” along with “The Great Divide,” is more so a reflection on his new life in the public eye, whereas “Stick Season” is more so about a breakup and transitioning after a breakup.
The acoustic guitar in this song is the highlight. The instrument is played at a higher tune than in “Stick Season” but in both songs, it is played at a quick pace, particularly in the beginning of “Stick Season.”
“PAID TIME OFF”
This song is one of my favorites of the whole album. It’s one of the more upbeat tracks and is about the dilemma that comes with deciding whether to stay in the small town or escape for a better life and see what the world offers.
There are many lyrics throughout the song that reference this, such as, “Someone once told us there’s a world out there / But we don’t care enough to drive that far.” In addition, this song showcases Kahan’s vocals the best, with the instruments being very soft and minimal.
The graduating class can definitely relate to this song, particularly with the lyric, “Most people grow up and they move away.”
With graduation approaching on May 9, many students may be facing difficult decisions about their lives post-graduation. Choosing between graduate school, jobs or even moving out of the location that may have been their home throughout their time in college is a challenging decision.
“HEADED NORTH”
This song is about the feeling of longing for home and missing a friend who has moved away. The lyrics of this song really paint the feelings Kahan feels, particularly the lyrics, “And it’s gone to shit without you / It was shit before, but at least I had you.”
This song has a sense of nostalgia around it, and can be considered a successor to “You’re Gonna Go Far,” which is from the “Stick Season” album and was released on June 9, 2023. The song is about someone leaving to pursue big dreams and the feeling that comes with saying goodbye.
This feeling is portrayed in “You’re Gonna Go Far” particularly with the lyrics, “So pack up your car, put a hand on your heart / Say whatever you feel, be wherever you are / We ain’t angry at you, love / You’re the greatest thing we’ve lost.”
Overall, I’d rank this album a 9/10. I really enjoyed it and I feel like it really does a good job of showcasing Kahan’s voice and his authenticity, especially between his past and present life.
