A newly dynamic chapter in villagerrr's discography, Carousel, Mark Scott’s fifth album as villagerrr, glides from slowcore to shoegaze, from log-cabin folk to theaccelerated bliss of rock tailor-made for an empty freeway. The boldest and most delicate album to date from the Ohio songwriter, Carousel is a sweeping exploration of what it means to try to make sincere art in a hyperexposed andconstricting age, where Scott’s big, midwestern songs smolder with a desire to find enduring meaning in an era rife with commodification. Piecing the music together over the course of two years, Scott let the collaborative spirit of his previous record flourish. 2024’s Tear Your Heart Out, sparked tours with Real Estate, Greg Freeman and Momma, a new label deal with Winspear and recent deluxe reissue, bringing in widening circles of listeners and collaborators. Carousel features a melange of Scott’s rising folk and indie rock peers, like Boone Patrello of Teethe, h. pruz and Carolina Chaue of Hemlock, and was mixed by Scott after listening back to rough drafts on long drives or on runs. With Scott’s keen ear for both particulate detail and expansive landscape, listening to villagerrr can feel like peering into prairie grass to see what's crawling there, then standing up suddenly to witness the splendor of anoncoming storm. Carousel harbors a lot of healthy skepticism about the world we're in now, but it also holds up proof that just laying down your guard and reaching out to other people can spark creatively bountiful relationships–and set the foundation for a life that's deeply, meaningfully livable.
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