Finding a place in the world with a mix of styles.
After nine albums with indie rock trio Peter Bjorn and John, Peter Morén began to confront the issue of who he really was as a songwriter. Given plenty of time to think during the pandemic, he emerged as SunYears with a debut album, “Come Fetch My Soul” in 2023. It had elements of guitar pop, indie rock, and folk, a mixture he’s evolved on his second album, “The Song Forlorn.” Morén credits The Beatles’ “Revolver” and “The White Album” as influences that leaned on a variety of styles. There certainly is something for everyone here.
Things kick off with ‘Where Are We’, a grumbling garage rock instrumental leading into the folk rock of ‘Dark Eyes’, inspired by a friend in the throes of depression. A theme continued by the piano ballad ‘Your Dad Was Sad’, written after his father-in-law’s sudden death. Spirits are lifted by ‘Spanner In the Works’, a perfect breezy piece of jangle pop, and instrumental ‘Swamp Mob’, which has a country edge about it. There are appearances by Lisa Hannigan and Sam Genders of Tunng on ‘Last Night on the Mountain’, Hannigan sharing vocal credits. At the same time, Nicole Atkins adds vocals on ‘The Body’, which, despite its upbeat groove, is a song about health scares. Proceedings close with the title track, where Morén, accompanied by Madison Cunningham, reflects on leaving songs unfinished, “give it the best you’ve got, you still never give enough because we’re only human.” It’s the sound of a man who has been searching for his place in the world, and with “The Song Forlorn”, Morén takes another step towards finding where he fits.
