Djo is an artist who I have been really digging into this year. I imagine he will be my top artist when Spotify wrapped comes around. I love artists that blend genres and styles, and Djo does that a lot. I discovered him through his song “End of Beginning” which is his most popular track. After loving the vibe of that song, I looked into him more.
DECIDE was an album of his I instantly fell in love with. This album includes End of Beginning on it. If you know anything about me, I love synth with a burning passion. I would credit that to Daft Punk. Daft Punk is a foundational band that a lot of my music taste stemmed from. Daft Punk involves almost all of the facets of music I was drawn to when doing my most preliminary music exploration outside of “whatever my dad liked”. Synth, Funk, Pop, Groove, R&B, and Psychedelia. These stylings are now among my favorites.
DECIDE (And Djo as a whole) touches on a lot of these same facets. Which makes it a recipe for an album/artist I will enjoy. This is what started me on listening to all of his stuff.
But I am not here to talk about DECIDE, I wanted to get into his more recent Album “The Crux”.
I was excited for it, because he had released the singles “Basic being Basic” and “Delete Ya” which I was hooked by. These songs felt in line with his previous work.
When listening to the first time, it instantly struck that The Crux is Djo making a dedicated effort to harken back to the artists he may love on a personal level. This album touches on a “70’s rock” vibe. You can hear it most noticeably in songs like “Gap Tooth Smile” and “Golden Line”. The style carries throughout a lot of the songs in one way or another.
On release, this threw me off. It was not the direction I expected the album to go, the singles that were released beforehand were probably the least 70’s sounding tracks on the entire album. So when listening to it, I found it didn’t click with me. It was a musical style I don’t resonate with. So I thought it would be an album that was more of a miss to me than anything.
After subsequent listens, it began to grow on me. I don’t know how to explain why it did, but I remember when it clicked. I was in my car, the windows were down, and it was nice outside. While driving, I had the album playing in it’s entirety. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire run through and saw it in a different light from that point on.
I am chronic lyrical analyst, I enjoy dissecting the themes and meanings of an album. Which may be a large part in why I grew to love the album overtime.
“Lonesome State of Mind” is the first song off the album. It reads to me as Djo realizing that his future isn’t how he imagined it may be. That there are things that have hurt him in the past, but they just become a part of who he is. The passage of time heals the wounds. It feels very much like a musical representation of if you were able to look back and see the timeline of your life sprawled behind you. Not in the way of wanting to go back, but in the way of understanding it’s what led you to this point. The desire to keep it moving and having to be okay with the fact you may be alone during some of the process of moving forward. And the acceptance of that.
The songs “Basic being Basic”, “Delete Ya” and “Fly” are all seemingly referencing different romantic endeavors that failed or didn’t have a chance of working out. One he talks about with disdain, One he feels he never had a chance with, and one that is him recognizing that he has to move on no matter how easy it would be slip back into their life. With “Potion” being a earnest and sentimental declaration of “I am going to keep trying till I get it right”. This is something he seems confident in that he wants, and he will keep working at it till he gets to a place he is fulfilled by his romantic relationship.
“Egg” is my favorite song off the album. This song seems to be him fighting himself on who he truly wants to be . He hides himself in a shell by putting on a persona that may not be truly who he is. Kind of like if you had an egg that was ornately decorated but when you crack it, its just like any other egg. Mundane and boring. I think this “egg” is an overall metaphor for his defense mechanism that he uses to conceal everything that goes on within himself. It hides his insecurities, anxieties, and self doubt. I think this song also may be him realizing he may not know who he is under this shell. And that scares him. He is scared people will be disappointed or he won’t live up to some expectation of him. This seems to be a common theme that runs in some of his other work, as he often references his success and fame thus far due to Stranger Things. I think he feels he needs to live up to his fame, but may have some insecurity in doing so.
If you don’t know already, Djo is the work of the actor Joe Keery. Most famously known for his work on Stranger Things. The song “Charlie’s Garden” is a direct call out to Charlie Heaton, who is a co-actor in Stranger Things alongside Joe. The two are reported to have a strong friendship. And the song is referencing his time with Charlie during their filming.
“Golden Line” and “Back on You” seem to be referencing either the people in his life or specific people who support him. He has a lot of love for them and trusts them. These are hopeful and warm songs that are intended to show who they are written for, that he understands that they have his best interests and he appreciates them deeply for that. He takes on the notion he wouldn’t be in the same place without them in his life.
Lastly, “The Crux” The titular track and the last song on the album. This one I struggle to decipher, the wording was a little strange. But it seems to be him wrapping up the album by implying he may be going back to his roots or where his “heart” is at. And then once he does that, he may be able to fully put himself out there and give it his all in the different areas of his life.
This shows just how much the album is Djo nodding and referencing his past and the people in it. His desire to find himself and to move forward with his life is evident through out it. And this 70’s inspiration I think is likely purposeful. If this style of music is nostalgic for him, that again ties back into it’s overall theming. Which made me appreciate it more as a fully body of work.
While The Crux is not my favorite Djo album in terms of its sound, it has definetely grown on me a lot and become a pretty close second to DECIDE. Its messaging resonates heavily to where I am at in my life, and felt like the perfect album to come out when it did. Which is why that car ride was a memorable instance of enjoying that album, and how I think it’s best enjoyed. It made me feel less bad about being so confused and feeling as if I’ve “missed” these imaginary milestones with age. Time is the only tell.
Give it a listen! (If you like that sort of thing).
-Erin
Orbitedbyerin 