Album Review: When I Was Younger by Colony House

New York – After Franklin, Tennessee’s CALEB reinvented, renamed and re-imagined themselves to create Colony House, band members Caleb Chapman (vocals), Scott Mills (guitar) and Will Franklin Chapman (drums) released their debut, When I Was Younger, off of Descendant Records. A lengthy fourteen tracks long, the album opens with “Silhouettes;” a bright, summer song perfect for a lead single.

Unfortunately, if you’re looking for the opener’s sound in the rest of the album, you’ll be disappointed. On the whole, the record is slow, soulful and clean. It has a refined sound, far from the twinkling guitars of “Silhouettes.” The album hits heavier with some tracks, namely the largely instrumental “2:20,” but it doesn’t take many risks instrumentally or thematically. Only a few songs wander away from the traditional four-piece set-up to include elements such as synths. As far as lyrics are concerned, the narrator is constantly reminding the listener that he is troubled but determined, which evokes Christian-crossover music (or at least is heavily influenced by that genre). The Chapmans are the sons of Steven Curtis Chapman, who is arguably the most famous Christian singer songwriter of the past couple decades, so the uplifting message-driven lyrics seem par for the course.

Instead of allowing the uplifting lyrics to become a rallying and inspirational cry (a la The Script’s “For The First Time”), the album comes across as too strongly one-note. “Moving Forward” and “Roll with the Punches” are overflowing with optimism and are ultimately skip-worthy. “When I Was Younger” and “I Had to Grow Up” break the monotony, but not constructively; as part song sample and part silence, they eat up album time instead of transitioning from one song to another. “Caught Me By Surprise” builds promisingly, but ultimately goes nowhere. The track has too many musical elements to keep track of, and with the addition of each component, the energy is displaced rather than collected. The track also exemplifies another issue with the record: its overuse of cliché.

Lyrically, the album seems to aim for some quality between optimistic and upbeat, but instead comes across as disingenuous. Each song sounds like some sort of mini anthem. “Keep On Keeping On” is practically eye-roll worthy with lines like, “Don’t waste time here feeling low.” The record’s unrelenting need to buck you up falls flat.

“Won’t Give Up” is the one song that manages to make up for it. A slow burn with hints of strings, it follows the same introspective and spiritual narrative, but this time hits the mark. This could be partly due to the fact that the song allows Caleb Chapman to stretch his legs, or rather his lungs. With only acoustic guitar and the occasional orchestral swell, the vocals really take center stage. “Lose Control” and “Waiting for My Time to Come” also have their flourishes, the latter finding some of the same energy as “Silhouettes,” but with a slower build. These songs stand as the moments of intentionality on When I Was Younger, draining out some of the many less genuine moments the album holds.

For more on Colony House go HERE.

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Zoe Marquedant

Zoe Marquedant is a Marylander now living in Brooklyn. She recently graduated from Sarah Lawrence College where she majored in Journalism and English literature. She is a freelance journalist, who primarily writes on music and culture. Her work can be seen in Boston Magazine, Highlight Magazine as well as on rsvlts.com, mxdwn.com and Baeblemusic.com. When not writing, Zoe is probably working her way through a new series on Netflix, researching new pie recipes and collecting dumb jokes (e.g. Two fish are in a tank. One turns to the other and says, "You man the guns. I’ll drive.") Follow her vain attempts at mastering social media at @zoenoumlaut