Forth Wanderers: Tough Love

Bask in sentimental indie pop tracks from Forth Wanderers. Hailing from Montclair, New Jersey, this quintet creates an over-stimulation of emotions while traversing themes of youth, love, and self.

Tough Love is the debut album of Ben Guterl (guitar), Ava Trilling (vocals), Duke Greene (guitar), Noah Schifrin (bass), and Zach Lorelli (drums) back in 2014. Here, Forth Wanderers establishes its arrival to the indie scene with eight uniquely crafted gems.

The beauty of Tough Love lies on its aura of stone cold musings and blissful high moments. Basically, it sounds like post-romantic depression tinged with a mixture of charm and aloofness from vocalist Ava Trilling.

<a href="http://forthwanderers.bandcamp.com/album/tough-love">Tough Love by Forth Wanderers</a>

In the opening track, Selfish, Forth Wanderers amps up slacker rock tunes interlaced with Trilling’s effortless alto. Listen as her talismanic voice sings about the travails and self-introspection of a suburban teenager. Lines such as “I wanna be known / as the girl who’s stone cold / wears her heart on her sleeve / for everyone to need” speak out to everyone, who at some point in their life, was caught up in their own bubble of emotional issues.

A personal favorite, Painting of Blue emanates an infectious sentimental wooziness. Combined with vocals that sound like their slipping from one note to the other, the band puts us in a trance of love and sentimentality.

Tough Love injects a bit of energy while still maintaining Forth Wanderers’ signature melancholic, single-string sound. The song is weirdly addicting; Trilling’s sleepy voice immediately hooks you in while your ears are set amidst a jungle of thick guitar and drum harmonization. It sounds like an organic chaos with Trilling’s soothing voice offered as a refuge.

Perhaps, what makes Forth Wanderers and this album special is its obliviousness to the outside world and to reality; it’s curled up within the confines of personal issues. The album draws us in because it’s a collection of raw confessions, sentimental musings, and restless thoughts that keep us awake at night.