Teen Daze is a stage name for solo musician Jamison Isaak. His first albums were released in 2010, attracting the attention of online music press outlets such as Pitchfork Media. Signing with Lefse Records, he released the full-length All of Us Together in 2012, followed quickly by Glacier in 2013. On his 2015 John Vanderslice-produced album Morning World, Teen Daze shifted from an electronic-driven style with elements of chillwave, house, and ambient to more of an indie pop sound, adding his own vocals.
After last year's foray into vibrant indie-pop, Themes finds Teen Daze returning to more ambient, electronic production with new insight: "I learned so much from the experience making Morning World, it would be a step backwards if I didn't apply it." This comes through in songs like "Lost", "Rising" and the first single, "Cycle", which fuse the synthesized sound of early Teen Daze records with the live energy of his more recent works. Themes is also distinct in its collaborative nature. Jamison has worked with other artists in the past, but never to this degree and expanse: "Making the last record alongside other people helped me realize that inviting additional minds to the creative process brings out the best in me."
Conceptually and thematically, this album is one of Jamison's most personal, navigating topics both intimate and broad: "Much of my work is inspired by nature, and it's scary to think that future generations may not have that same relationship. The album starts with Cycle, a song about my personal experience dealing with anxiety and depression, and it slowly zooms out to cover some of the external forces, like climate change, that are affecting those experiences. After touring last fall, I came home so cynical and worn out, I decided take all the nervous energy I had about the world, and filter it through more optimistic, positive sounds.".
Around
Teen Daze Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Follow the absence of
Lightning full in the ground
Follow me down
Dream slow
Of endless love
Home is no one we found
There's no one around
Teen Daze's song "Around" is a laid-back dream-pop track that seems to evoke a sense of longing and searching for something that cannot be found. The lyrics speak of spinning around and following the absence of lightning full in the ground, which could be interpreted as a metaphor for searching for something intangible and elusive. The singer urges the listener to dream slow of endless love and to follow him down on this journey of discovery. The idea of home is also mentioned, but the lyrics suggest that home is not a physical place or a person that can be found. Instead, it is described as a warming ground, a comforting feeling that cannot be fully explained.
The overall mood of the song is contemplative and introspective. The music itself is ethereal and dreamy, with soft keyboard and guitar parts creating a soothing and introspective atmosphere. The lyrics seem to speak to a universal human experience of searching for meaning and connection, but always feeling like there is something just out of reach.
Line by Line Meaning
Spinning around
Turning repeatedly with no particular direction or aim.
Follow the absence of
Pursue the lack or nonexistence of something.
Lightning full in the ground
Electrifying flashes of light within the earth.
Follow me down
Come after me as I descend.
Dream slow
Imagine gradually and languidly.
Of endless love
Of boundless, infinite affection.
Home is our warming ground
Our domicile is where we feel most safe and content.
Home is no one we found
Our place of origin is nowhere to be located or recognized.
There's no one around
No person is present in the immediate vicinity.
Contributed by Charlie I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.