On January 25th, alt-rock shoegaze musician Tobin Sprout (Guided By Voices) released a 14 track stunner of an album, titled The Universe and Me. As you slip into the fuzz-heavy first track “Future Boy Today/Man Of Tomorrow”, you realize the album is going to be just as heavy hitting as the work he’s been known for, both with intrinsically adrenaline-pumping compositions and well-thought, insightful out lyrics. And while the title track is slow, quiet, and beautiful, it is immediately followed by the midtempo “A Walk Across The Human Bridge”, which calls to mind quite the literal visuals.
“Manifest Street” holds a slower, lighter melody accompanied by lullaby-like vocals and lyrics that are nothing if not beautifully observant, while “Honor Guard” maintains a similar clip that rolls almost seamlessly into the piano-based “When I Was A Boy”, rife with astute observations.
The compositions vary so much from song to song, that it’s easy to experience Sprout’s musical prowess in this release alone. But his work has always been some form of magnetic, and we’re big, big fans of this new release.
If you want to check out our favorite track, you’ll have to play through to #11, “Tomorrow From Heaven”. But you’ll revel in the time spent with The Universe and Me, as it provides its listener time to think, reminisce, and be inspired.
The Universe and Me is available now, but it’s selling quick, so get your copy soon. (The colored vinyl option is already gone!) Keep up with Tobin Sprout here.
