On Friday, April 24, Noah Kahan, a folk-pop artist, released his fourth album, “The Great Divide: The Last of the Bugs.” As someone who has been listening to him since seventh grade (yes, before he became mainstream) and is now finishing my freshman year of college, his album could not have come at a better time. The new songs capture that strange mix of freedom, homesickness, identity and quiet reinvention that defines the first year of college. The album is sad, but the perfect timeline of freshman year.
The first song that really stood out to me was “Dashboard.” Similar to his song “You’re Gonna Go Far” from his last album “Stick Season,” this new song highlights that in-between feeling of leaving something familiar but not having yet arrived somewhere new. At first, I was really scared to move to a whole new state for college, but looking back, it was one of the best decisions of my life. “Look at you girl, crossing state lines with your shadows,” is my favorite line from the song. It is basically the literal image of leaving home for college — driving away, going somewhere new — but the key word is “shadow,” suggesting that you cannot leave yourself behind even if you leave your hometown. Moving away does not mean you are becoming a new person, it means you are finding a new version of yourself — one that is changing for the better.
Next, “Dan” encapsulates that time you go back home for the first time in a while and see your hometown friends. My best friend from home knows a different version of me than people at college do, and it is important to become comfortable with that. “Dan” captures the strange comfort of going home during freshman year: everything seems the same, but deep down, it has changed. The line “hometown heroes fighting over politics” shows how easy conversations are with people who have known you for years. I am not afraid to talk about deeper or more personal topics because there is already history there, whereas at the start of college, I often avoided saying too much. At the same time, “we are so alone most of the time,” introduces the quieter truth: even with familiarity, all of us have branched out to different lives. I love catching up with my hometown friends, but I often find myself realizing that I am not a part of their everyday life anymore. We do not get to sit at the same lunch table anymore and gossip together. Instead, they hear my stories and I hear theirs without ever knowing the people involved. “Dan” encompasses the feeling of comfort and incompleteness going home after college.
Lastly, the title track, “The Great Divide,” is about the divide that growing up creates. There are people that I went to high school with every day that I have not talked to since graduation. “And my deep misunderstanding of your life” explores how sometimes the distance makes us realize the most important things were often left unsaid. When you see the same people every day, you assume understanding is automatic, but freshman year has made me realize that a lot of the understanding was never actually spoken. The “divide” is not just physical; it builds slowly over time through change and separate experiences. “I hope you settle down, I hope you marry rich,” reinforces that there is no resentment toward old relationships, only the acknowledgement that life moves people in different directions. I still care about my high school friends deeply, but I also know that I do not play the same role in their lives anymore.
Overall, the album “The Great Divide” feels like more than just a collection of songs; it is a reflection of how freshman year has felt. It captures the growth that is hard to explain and the way that distance slowly changes relationships. Going home is comforting but also unfamiliar in ways. So, on your drive or flight home for the summer, put the album on and reflect on how college has changed you.