The Comeback is Beyond the Midwest’s debut album. In all my years of reviewing music, It was worth saying that I was lucky to be one of the first few people to listen to this album. It moved me in ways I can’t imagine. Let’s do a deep dive and read why “The Comeback” is an album that you need to listen to.
Let’s start with the first track of the album, “Sleepless Nights”. The song talks about hardships, and worrying about what will happen tomorrow. The lyrics “I don’t wanna remember you, can I just forget you” hit deep. The track is a one-dimensional song where the character talks to himself much like what we do on times where we experience days where we feel like we just want to give up.
I like the distorted intro with the bang-on-the-ceiling effect on the second track, “Outside” giving a dark vibe to the track. The main anthem of the song is about never giving up even in the face of adversity and just standing up for yourself every day and eventually you’ll just be telling yourself, “I don’t even know how we got this far”.
The sample used in the intro to “Tamagotchi Friends” created this futuristic vibe to the overall track. The main theme of the song is about being true to yourself. Believing in your capacity and trusting that whatever comes your way, the true ones will come out of the shadows and guide you. The whole theme of the song speaks volumes because in the world that we live in right now, anyone can be connected anywhere but the real ones are hard to come by.
I have to be honest, the overall sound of “Letter To Myself” is great however, I feel the intro is not Beyond the Midwest’s strongest feat, particularly the synth keyboard line. From a musical perspective, I think there is a better line for that intro but I have no doubt with the lyrics. I tried to piece the album together and we are seeing firsthand how Beyond the Midwest thinks. How he was able to overcome all those struggles and how we as listeners can learn from his experience.
Beyond the Midwest took us back with this cinematic intro for “Rage of War”. Just do it. You have to endure all odds. That is the theme of the track. It’s a call to action for the broken. Beyond the Midwest is telling us that we have to conquer ourselves and start fighting the demons in our heads. hence, the creepy vocal samples throughout the song.
What I love about “Maybe Someday” is that Beyond the Midwest’s perspective changed. In the first few tracks, we can feel the pain and suffering and now we are entering the good life. The past is now just the past and we are in the dawn of the new age.
“Dust 2 Trust” is now a full 180-degree shift. What I mean is that the feel of the song is positive. After all that heaviness and longingness in the first few tracks, we are now towards the end of the story. The reason why I use the word “Story” is because the album, “The Comeback” is not your typical compilation of songs. It’s a story worth noting.
And the final track “See Me” is a call for anyone still in the dark. Someday, you’ll overcome your struggles and you will definitely win yourself over.
Overall, “The Comeback” album is a story that anyone can resonate with. The hope is that it will shed light on issues that a lot of us are afraid of even opening up and on the other hand, it can become an inspiration. Kudos to Beyond the Midwest for being brave in the face of adversity and Inspiring us to face our problems head-on.
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About the Author
He has been in the music industry for two and a half decades. Currently, he plays bass guitar for a rock-reggae band called EnjointPh and a funk-fusion trio called Banky. He also hosts a podcast titled Usapang Musiko with Ervin Besana, which explores topics such as music, arts, and philosophy.
