In a violet-hued video for "Lost Youth/Lost You", How to Dress Well frontman - Chicago-born singer-songwriter and philosophy PhD graduate Tom Krell - appears without a shirt to deliver an intimate, poignant and accessible confessional pop/indie R&B song about the vagaries of his heart:
"I say I think I know what love is nowI think I got it figured outBut then the second that I open my mouthI want to change my heart againI say I think I know what love is nowI think I kinda figured it outBut then the second that I open my mouthI'm going to change my heart againI'm going to change my heart again, gain, gain, gain, gain"
Lyrics: Genius
The track is the lead single from his upcoming fourth album Care (2016), and appears to recreate the strengths of his previous albums, which have typically used "the common tools of R&B and pop expression-- four-minute songs, autobiography, choruses, confession-- to create a work of poignant and devastating album" (Ian Cohen, Pitchfork). The chorus certainly fits into the "pop, but not populist" direction that Krell seems to be aiming for, but a closer listen to the falsetto-delivered verses reveal that his emotions are far more muddled, conflicted and ambivalent than the sonic clarity of the track's clear, bright and shimmery Jack Antonoff production.
In this respect and others, Krell is similar to two other philosophy majors turned singer-songwriters: Lana Del Rey and Kyla La Grange. Krell's lyricism and romantic pessimism matches Del Rey's, while his preference for a more euphoric/psychedelic production strikes more of a similarity with La Grange. If there's something one can expect of students of philosophy, it's probably a certain level of depth. Krell's pop/mainstream ambitions may cause the earworm-y repetitions and guitar solos to overshadow his injections of ambivalence and irony, but it's there nonetheless - if you care to listen closely enough.
