We always have a need to create an overarching story to a music. Press cycles become defined by one sentence pitches. “This is a record about depression, but the music sounds happy.” But nothing in reality exists in an easy-to-unpack, one sentence statement. Things become muddled, messy, and lost in translation.
After three years with several starts and stops, Rust Ring has released their debut LP, Genuine Me (Worry Records). It’s the culmination of several years of mental and physical ailments, ranging from trigger finger, mono, and a detached retina.
The record is a documentation of songwriter, guitarist, and lead singer Joram Zbichorski’s mental growth, peering into his various insecurities. “Physical / Mental” deals with a hand ailment in the band’s first year that had Zbichorski unable to play the guitar frequently. Or “Haircuts,” which deals with gender dysphoria that you can feel the emotion and vulnerability through Zbichorski’s vocals.
Rust Ring feels familiar, but not overly so. You have trouble making a one sentence pitch to your unknowing friends and fellow music dorks. Signifiers like “emo” become useless. Some songs are slowcore-leaning, drawing out phrases and words to create four minute soundscapes. But other times, songs are concise, following the traditional verse-chorus structure that is endemic to pop songs like in “Since June.”
But, what really is so compelling is the simplicity of the lyrics. It’s a very dangerous game you play when a songwriter chooses to become so vulnerable. It can be almost cringe inducing and hard to listen to. But, it works in this instance. It makes the emotions plain in a way that is devastating. You are forced to engage with narrator. By not using the third person, there is a palpable closeness in these songs that is impossible for the listener to disengage from.
Genuine Me is the realization of many things. It’s the documentation of several years of growth, health issues, and much more. The songs are a catalogue of the last couple of years where insecurity and depression is laid bare. There is no obscuring to be found. But by the end, there is a feeling of just self-love. It’s accepting that you are a constant work in progress and not a fixed state.
Rust Ring’s full-length album, Genuine Me, is out on Friday, July 12th via Worry Records. Catch the band at the official release show on Saturday, July 13th at Subterranean; RSVP and grab your tickets via Facebook.