SiR Reignite's His Love For Home In 'Chasing Summer'
When in dire straits, we often dream of sunshine. The imagery and feelings that we associate with summer are most attractive when the clouds roll in with no sign of moving along. We long for the warmth and freedom that the season inspires because running can be an easier feat than accepting and growing out of our own shortcomings. But that dream may turn out to be more magnificent than a real getaway. On his latest offering, SiR shows what it really means to chase this storied blissfulness. Chasing Summer explores the temporary euphoria of escape and reminds us why we always find our way back home in the end.
The album opens with SiR longing for a way out. In “Hair Down,” he sings “Baby I’m just tryna let my hair down. Everybody’s watching I’m aware now.” Fame—thought to be one of life’s greatest escapes from mediocracy and stress—turns out to be more taxing than he bargained for. SiR has boarded the metaphorical flight and invites us along for the ride, explaining why he bought the ticket in the first place. Following right after with “John Redcorn,” SiR laments over an unsatisfying affair. A reoccurring theme on the album, he finds himself with the right person at the wrong time. Left with no clear solutions to his troubles, SiR opts to find a new place to exist happily, which turns out to be easier in theory than practice.
In the album’s body, we feel the tension between the rush of a seemingly never-ending party and the inevitable comedown. The songs provide a particular brand of fun that isn’t built to sustain you forever. At nearly the halfway point in the journey at Track 6 of 14, SiR is nostalgic for a perfected reality instead of the dream he’s chased thus far: “A conversation that we never had replayin’ in my head...I wanted the weather to change. Tried my best to outrun the rain” (“New Sky”). He’s chased the sun, but there is no place to go to get out of his own mind. The sun really begins to set as the album reaches its end, punctuated by the end of a seasonal fling in a brief voicemail and hazy, melancholy ballads. (“Wires in the Way” and “Still Blue”). The summer’s over, and the rain has returned with a vengeance.
So what’s the point of the journey if the destination never lives up to your musings?
Sometimes the best part of time away is going back home.
Spending time with spaces you’ve never met under a sun whose burn you’ve never felt can be nice, but nothing beats your own beat-up futon and ratty stuffed bear. Getting away offers new perspective on situations we’ve grown too comfortable with, and SiR finds this clarity in the penultimate track “The Recipe.” He allowed himself to become enamored with the summer’s magic and has taken off the rose-colored glasses. And with these brand new eyes, he can appreciate the beauty in comfort and familiarity (“LA”). “I’ve learned and I’ve taught...I’ve learned to love mine, Even when it ain’t much.” No matter how we roam and search for the answers that live in the skies, home will always be there with arms wide open no matter how long we take.
In Chasing Summer, SiR is still on the run, but we make it back home this time. Even as he traverses around the globe, the West Coast stays in his peripheral because no matter how we wish to escape, the trips will only fuel us to reshape our realities in every season. So hop on that flight, take that road trip, log off for the afternoon—your life will be ready for you when you get back.
