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Album Review: Yellow and Such EP

Gus Dapperton
Yellow and Such EP
Gus Dapperton
https://soundcloud.com/gus-dapperton


Sporting a bowl cut, round glasses, and a pink crewneck, Gus Dapperton exudes an undeniably unique vibe on the artwork for Yellow and Such.

Seeming to embody multiple juxtapositions at once, he appears casual yet meticulous, eccentric yet classic, and perhaps most intriguingly, focused — but lost in a daydream. This distinct aesthetic carries over into the EP’s love-focused, four-song soundscape, producing an engaging auditory experience for the listener.

Yellow and Such opens with “I’m Just Snacking,” a track layered with unusual but surprisingly accurate metaphors. With a narrative centering around the frustrations and excuses of love, Dapperton seems to question our tendency to avoid commitment with lyrics such as “Honey I’m whole so what are we snacking for?” Dreamy, endearingly quirky, and subtly optimistic, it’s no surprise that “I’m Just Snacking” has recently been streamed over one billion times.

“Miss Glum and the Pursuit of Falling” then takes the EP on a mysterious, elegiac turn. While “I’m Just Snacking” tells of a new, hopeful relationship stuck in limbo, “Miss Glum” offers no ambiguity, and is instead perfumed with nostalgia and tinted with melancholy. Using an abstract, whimsical storyline and unconventional, image-evoking lyrics such as “I heard all about you / Once upon a jet black bruise,” Dapperton explores a relationship’s surprising, unfortunate ending while evoking an ominous acoustic atmosphere.

Halfway into the EP, “Gum, Toe, and Sole” initially features an energetic, addictive mix of percussion and looped vocals, but transitions quickly into a groovy yet sombre track. Easily the most introspective and introverted song of the EP, questions abound throughout (“…where do we go from here?”). “Gum, Toe, and Sole” also contains the most reflective and raw lyric of the EP   “All I know is you look like my home now.”

Yellow and Such eventually ends on a slow, brooding note. On “The Fool”, a wandering melody compliments lyrics such as “This dude / Has driven me far away from love.” Just as Yellow and Such opens with a hopefulness for new beginnings, it seems to come full circle and ends with a rejection of what it originally desired.

Overall, this self-produced EP is incredibly satisfying to listen to. Its metaphorical tendencies gives the listener licence to daydream about their own life, while sudden introspective lyrics prevents monotony and keeps you engaged enough to pay attention throughout the entire record. To me, Yellow and Such is impressive – there’s much more to this EP than the surface eccentricities, and like an acoustic iceberg, it constantly invites you to explore its shadowy, whimsical flip side.

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