With artwork full of moodiness and motion blur such to rival my own tendency for abstract ambiguity, TREY’s newest EP is a strong follow up to blossom from earlier this year. This new collection repurposes “Fangs”, the artist’s most-played single to date, with four other songs which help provide a greater sense of the concept at hand.
Truth. It’s no small concept, something every era has grappled with, something that has bewildered the minds of philosophers, scientists, theologians, and the common man alike. And while TREY doesn’t unravel all mysteries of the world and eternity, he and his compatriots do look at one specific topic that sits at the crux of most modern debates: identity. And while there are many wiser than me who have tackled the topic, I think Truth sums up things nicely: who we are is more than a chain of reactions, of our circumstances, faults, or even successes.
Much of this through the lens of TREY’s non-relationship with his absent father and the assurance of his fiancée. The story passes by pretty quickly, but it’s forward enough to hit hard. “THE BITE” is a sort of intro to “Fangs”, and “object permanence” recounts, through monolog, him wrestling with his identity in light of not knowing who his father is. And while all of this additional context is necessary and does ultimately add to the EP, that leaves for three full songs.
Thankfully, TREY does not disappoint. It’s not hard to see why “Fangs”, with its pseudo-80s flavor, is such a staple. “i forgot that people stayed until i met you.” is maybe the closest to a rock song of the bunch, and even with its one-line chorus, it’s powerful in showcasing a level of desperation. “The Pursuit of Truth and Virality” caps things off with its five-word patterns and subdued energy, but even at its two-minute length, it’s a pleasant addition.
One thing that feels pertinent is the song titles themselves – or rather, their use of capitalization. The EP begins in all caps, not unlike TREY’s own moniker. But this is followed by a descent as everything eventually devolves to lowercase (to some degree, the antithesis of self-actualization). The final track is most appropriately-titled and seems to act as a center of balance and stability. Maybe I’m reading into it a bit too far, but it’s something that at the very least feels significant.
Truth is a powerful EP, perhaps even more so than blossom. Of course, a lot of this is from the heavy-lifting of a few stellar singles. But even “THE BITE” and “object permanence” feel like necessary components of the story. EPs can often feel wasteful in this respect, but Truth is singular in its messaging. And with the mix of electronic and more standard rock components, TREY establishes himself with a versatile flavor of indie pop. It’s rare to find an artist with this level of accessibility and this concentrated degree of humanity.
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