English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jacob Collier has commonly been lauded as a modern musical prodigy. Throughout his career, Collier has been known for his complex arrangements, unintuitive harmonies and unconventional orchestrations. Collier, however, takes a more stripped-back approach for his sixth studio album, “The Light For Days.” The album is a delightful blend of covers and original songs that introduces a new yet welcome aspect of Collier’s music: simplicity.
Collier was first discovered through his YouTube channel, where he would post reharmonized arrangements of his favorite songs. His 2013 cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing”—featuring layered vocal harmonies, upright bass, electric bass, keyboard and a variety of other instruments, all performed by Collier—notably caught the ear of American producer Quincy Jones, who jump-started Collier’s professional career. From then on, Collier continued to explore the limits of what could be considered music, from demonstrating his customized musical hardware to turning his live audiences into choirs.
Collier’s previous albums are quite the display of musical virtuosity, allowing what he refers to as his “creative infinity syndrome” to have free rein over his projects. Although I personally appreciate the overly complex and, at times, unintelligible aspects of his music, I definitely feel that I most enjoyed his music with a notebook in front of me, ready to analyze whatever I hear.
A common criticism of Collier’s music is that it is too technical and difficult for audiences without extensive knowledge of music theory to understand. While this may apply to his other albums, “The Light For Days” balances the intricacies of music with a style that appeals to broader audiences. Featuring six original songs and five covers, this album is mostly based around Collier’s iconic five-string guitar, with some tracks featuring a 10-string guitar. Collier used this project as an opportunity to explore the different capabilities of the instrument, exploring alternative tunings and different strumming patterns.
When my other music-obsessed friends discuss Collier, we typically come to the same consensus: His genius shines the most when his work is contained within a specific concept. Some examples of this are his reharmonization of The Beach Boys’ “In My Room,” and his background vocals for Lizzy McAlpine’s “Erase Me” and SZA’s “Good Days.” This balance of figuring out how to channel his talents while maintaining the integrity of the song is on full display in “The Light For Days.” By adding the constraint of using one instrument, Collier’s experimentation is contained to the limits of what blends with the sonic and stylistic qualities of the guitar. The soft strummed chords and cascading chromatic scales in the guitar take the front seat, making this album feel like an extended duet between Collier and his instrument.
That is not to say that Collier loses his characteristic creativity in this record. “Keep an Eye On Summer” features dizzying modulations and ad-libs. This cover of The Beach Boys’ 1964 song feels incredibly reminiscent of the usual madness Collier’s music embodies. “Sweet Melody,” the only track that had me intensely focused and caused a spiral of headache-inducing analysis, is rhythmically disorienting, with a guitar line in septuple meter—meaning seven beats per measure—as the vocal line falls into a contrasting sextuple rhythm at the lyric, “Kiss me with your mouth open.”
The rest of this album, however, is relatively simple, featuring comprehensible rhythms and delightfully consonant harmonies. One personal highlight of this album was “Norwegian Wood,” originally performed by The Beatles. I had grown up listening to The Beatles and always enjoyed the mirroring of the melody between John Lennon’s vocals and the sitar, performed by George Harrison, as well as the unconventional mixolydian scale in this song’s melody. Collier performs a stripped-back rendition of “Norwegian Wood,” staying true to the song’s original harmonic structure and featuring an isolated melody in the vocal line. This track has a playful feel—as if Collier simply started recording a solo jam session—with its constant shift in focus between Collier’s baritone voice and his guitar.
The final song, “Something Heavy,” diverges from the orchestration of the rest of the album, featuring piano and synthesizers in addition to the guitar. While quite a contrast in character, this track’s placement at the end of the record ties it together in a poignant way. This gentle ballad is an expression of what I love about this album: Collier’s love for music is an underlying thread connecting the complexity and indulgence of his work.
Previously, my sentiments about Collier were that his foremost audience was himself, followed by the small cohort of people who treat music like an exercise in analysis. However, “The Light For Days” takes a different approach, simultaneously displaying Collier’s musical ability while still being a pleasant collection of melodies and harmonies. Even a song as complicated as “Sweet Melody” still embraces this gentler character, with the uneven rhythm creating a joyful, swinging sensation. “The Light For Days” contains everything I love about Collier’s music and has slowly become one of my favorite albums of his. I certainly hope that he continues to explore this balance between intricacy and accessibility in his music, as I believe this quiet restraint is what makes this album so lovely.