Noah Kahan Patrick McCormack In the wake of his smash hit “Stick Season,” Grammy nominated singer-songwriter Noah Kahan found himself at a crossroads.
How does an artist follow up an album that categorically changed their life? A breakthrough hit is what most dream about, but what comes next is much less frequently talked about. Kahan outlined much of this struggle in his recently released Netflix documentary, Noah Kahan: Out of Body, but the real exploration comes on his newly released fourth studio album, The Great Divide. The 17-track album is expansive and features several songs that clock in at more than five minutes long.
The album digs into Kahan’s life now and how fame has changed his relationships with his loved ones and himself. Of course, the singer also digs into how fame has changed his relationship with his home of Vermont, frequently featured in his lyrics. He makes several references to 89, the highway running through the area of New Hampshire and Vermont he grew up in (I’m a Route 3 and 293 person myself) and there’s an assortment of Easter eggs for those familiar with the region.
Kahan’s next chapter is decidedly bright and long. Below, The Hollywood Reporter digs into The Great Divide track-by-track.
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“End of August”
Image Credit: Mercury Records Kahan drops listeners into the world of The Great Divide with opening track “End of August.” The track, produced by Kahan and Aaron Dessner, begins with the ambient sounds of bugs buzzing. If you close your eyes, it’s easy to imagine yourself sitting outside in the Vermont golden hour setting the song evokes.
The song seems to depict a drive into Kahan’s home state of Vermont. The singer-songwriter name drops his brothers, spotting license plates from the neighboring state of New York and the interstate highway 89 that intersects through the area of New Hampshire and Vermont, where he grew up. “End of August” is the perfect opener for Kahan’s next chapter. It sets the scene that, yes, this will be another album that seems to take inspiration from Kahan’s own life, but sonically speaking, it’s a clear indication that this album is not another Stick Season.
The idea that The Great Divide would be more of what he’d put out before with breakout album Stick Season was a fear Kahan expressed in his recently released Netflix documentary Noah Kahan: Out of Body.
Coming in at more than five minutes, “End of August” ignores the increasingly frustrating trend of short songs. It’s a proper warmup for the next 16 tracks. It starts mellow and builds up throughout the song, much like the anticipation for what’s to come.
