Ratboys Navigate a Tentative Path Towards Finding Peace in New Beginnings
Singin’ to an Empty Chair invites listeners into a warm, swirling world of twangy instrumentals and tender vocals that ring with the familiarity of childhood laughter and a favorite lullaby. The album doesn’t just paint a vibrant musical landscape, but allows listeners to relive nostalgia with a full sensory experience. Ratboys explore the impermanence of life and the wounds it inflicts upon close relationships. Through 90s-inspired alternative rock instrumentals, hints of punk and grunge add a tender emotional depth to a rich history spelled out over the 11-track album. Working as a dynamic quartet, Ratboys compose impactful and explosive instrumentals that complement heartfelt lyrics and vocals as each song pieces together the story of a changing relationship, like a collage of moments gathered in a photo book over time.
Photo by Miles Kalchik
Folksy vocals from Julia Steiner echo hopeful chords and waking drums in “Open Up,” allowing listeners to feel inspired and at ease. A springy and fresh electric guitar melody gives hollow and bright drums the encouragement to build stronger through each verse, eventually settling into a steady rhythm. The instrumentals reflect the bubbling confidence within us to find the courage to open up and surrender to the truth: “Pick all the locks inside our heads/It takes a while, in your defense/But, I got lots of time/So, what’s it gonna take to open up tonight?” “Open Up” crescendos into an eager and confident clashing of instrumentals, inviting listeners to dig deeper and think introspectively throughout the remainder of the album.
Electric guitar solos, country-inspired instrumentals, and salty smooth vocals with breaks of humor and silly musings create a distinct and dynamic musical sound across the album, echoing through tracks such as “Anywhere,” where a playful back-and-forth between racing drum beats and spinning guitar reflects a romantic and upbeat repetition in the lyrics, where “Strange Love” showcases Ratboys’ range as the casual ringing of a Tamborine brightens full-bodied drum beats. A relaxed, swaying rhythm in “Penny in the Lake” accompanies expressive vocals and cheeky humor that offers a breath of fresh air and relatability: “Today’s gonna change my life/What’s for breakfast, Jesus Christ?”
“Anywhere” Official Music Video Directed by Bobby Butterscotch
More edgy electric guitar riffs, reminiscent of 90s grunge and punk rock, reveal the album’s shift into a reflection on the relationships we carry with us throughout our lives and how they change with or without us. “Know You Then” addresses the multiple phases of life we experience and how friends, family, and acquaintances float in and out of them, witnessing us at all points in our journey: “Oh I would have been there in less than a second/If time and space allowed/Oh it’s all I can say/That I didn’t know you then.” “The World, So Madly” shares a different perspective on this theme through nostalgic and breezy instrumentals that search for answers in a lost world. The track illuminates how versions of ourselves will always exist for others, regardless of how we’ve changed. However, nothing stays the same, and a part of life is about accepting and finding peace in that fact: “Where does all the pain go/When nothing exists?/Now he floats above you like a red balloon/That was tied to your skinny wrist—that’s all he is now.”
“Just Want You to Know the Truth” continues the conversation from “Open Up,” as we navigate the fallout of a relationship by finally finding the courage to face our mistakes, apologize, and speak our truth, without the need for excuses or explanation: “So, when it comes time to talk, I got nothin’ to prove/I just want you to know the truth.” The song reflects on the nostalgia of childhood and how we change and naturally grow apart from family and friends, whether because of physical distance, emotional depth, or both. A deep and constant slow drum beat grounds the song in a slower, more melancholy pace that allows listeners to imagine a foggy memory of their own: “Lasagna’s in the oven/It’s another Christmas Eve/You and I would go and hide/Until it came time to eat.”
Album Cover by Marcus Nuccio
“Burn it Down” marks a turning point in the album, as the vocals and instrumentals find a pleasant balance between grungy, melancholic, eerie, and angry, while addressing feeling frustrated over the inevitability of change but the simultaneous refusal to improve what isn’t working in a situation: “It’s always been this way/It’s never gonna change/So, take your kindling rage/And throw it on the flame.” While angry, the track hints at the idea that if patterns refuse to change, then there is nothing to lose in fighting them with our full force.
“At Peace in the Hundred Acre Woods” concludes the album with an upbeat and positive outlook: “‘Cause when the world stops/But you’re spinning on your own/It takes a few days just to slow back down/Well, that’s okay, ‘cause we’ve only got forever/In this peaceful path of wood we’ve found.” A country-inspired twang in the vocals and a swaying drum instrumental offer us some comfort as we long for simpler times. Chirpy bell instrumentals ring throughout the song, reminding listeners that finding peace is a possible outcome to the anger, heartbreak, and torment we may experience throughout our lives.
Give Singin’ to an Empty Chair a listen down below and catch them live on their When the Sun Explodes tour starting at the end of this month.
