Released in 2019, Rex Orange County’s “Pony” album remains to be one of my favorites of not only his music, but albums overall. With 10 songs coming in at 33 minutes, Rex had us all wishing there was more.
The album opens with 10/10, which originally was not my favorite, but quickly grew on me. The upbeat song talks about his feelings being less than a 10, but being able to pull himself together after a hard year. Always shares a similar idea, of the feeling of having to make yourself feel better, but with a much slower tempo. This is one of my favorites.
The next song, Laser Lights, holds something similar to the style of Hobo Johnson, with more words spoken in tempo with a melody in the background, but Face-to-Face brings the tempo back up with a fun beat and quick-sang lyrics. Stressed Out comes in as the fifth song, in which Rex slows down once again. There is a lot of fluctuation in tempos and beats throughout the album, but it all feels cohesive. Stressed Out talks about his feelings of being overwhelmed and like he is being taken advantage of, and not taken care of.
Never Had the Balls brings back the upbeat indie side of the album, and listening to it will always put a smile on my face. The song entails exactly what you’d expect from the title, and it’s just something fun to dance to. The next song, Pluto Projector is what I like to think of as Rex’s version of White Ferrari, so you will have to listen for yourself and see what you think.
The second to last song, It Gets Better, references Rex’s past years, and he talks about the progress he’s made as a person and an artist. One of the lyrics, “she changed the world and it’s better for it I know” really stuck out to me, as it’s one of the first songs where he introduces another person. However, the final song on the album, “It’s Not the Same Anymore” slows it down with a simple guitar in the back. Rex once again talks about feeling tired, and different than he was before. Overall, as an indie album, this is not one to miss!