ARLO PARKS: ‘COLLAPSED IN SUNBEAMS’ REVIEW
An authentic, sentimental, glimmer of hope
Arlo Parks touched the souls of listeners with her debut single ‘Cola’ back in 2018. Since then, her career journey has been immense, collecting near to 3-million monthly Spotify listeners, featuring in the ‘Gucci Absolute Beginners’ campaign, and now releasing her debut album ‘Collapsed in Sunbeams’ just two years after uploading her demos to BBC Introducing.
Often referred to as the voice of her generation, Parks is recognised for tenderly addressing issues such as grief, mental illness, queer romance and youthful hope and desire. Poetically bringing attention to the above, Parks’ words are backed by dreamy instrumentals of a soft ‘groove-with-me’ Neo-Soul likeness. Representing Gen-Z, it is evident how many had high hopes for the release of this debut collection of honest work.
The album begins with the title track, a spoken-word poetry piece, enticing the listener with Parks’ authentic voice which hones in on miniscule details of life. ‘Collapsed in Sunbeams’ triggers an imaginary scene in which Parks is beside us, commenting on human nature, comforting us to be at one with our emotions. Swiftly followed by the consoling moods in tracks such ‘Hurt’ and ‘Hope’, Parks empathises with the grief of those around her and reminds us of how painfully common it is: “You’re not alone / Like you think you are / We all have scars / I know it’s hard’’.
Although a youthful commentary from the 20-year-old singer-songwriter, her words are full of wisdom and sympathy. Her track ‘Black Dog’ touches on the darkness of depression, expressing the torementing reality of supporting someone through mental illness.
Through the album’s journey, Arlo Parks discusses her sexuality. ‘Green Eyes’, co-written by the 2000s Bedroom Pop icon Clairo, expresses insight into society’s problematic opinions on queer relationships, whilst encouraging individuals to have faith and trust in their true selves. Meanwhile in other tracks, Parks, who is openly bisexual, speaks perspectively of romantic struggles; from being in love with her heterosexual friend in ‘Eugene’, and supporting another friend through their familial disapproval of their sexuality in ‘For Violet’.
The album ends on the jazzy moving notes of ‘Portra 400’ which holds the sentiment of the whole record: ‘Making rainbows out of something painful’ - the creation of an emotional catalogue full of honesty and beauty, formed from the harshness of adulthood.
The combination of shuffling soulful beats and painfully truthful lyrics hold the hopeful essence of this album. Parks’ poetic stance on the realities of adolescence is like a hand-hold from a long lost best friend, someone to bring warmth to the actuality of our current struggles. She speaks of themes which are rarely addressed so candidly - it is comfortingly vulnerable. ‘Collapsed in Sunbeams’ is somehow both innovative and yet, familiar, navigating the intimate issues we face on a daily basis with authenticity and honesty.
Listen to CHANGE THE RECORD podcast with Arlo Parks here:
Listen to ‘Collapsed in Sunbeams’ here:
