Shapes is the second studio album from emerging prog-rock artist John Ward. Today, we have a track by track of the record; check it out below!
Shapes - This song and the whole album in summary is basically about the exploitation of young people's sexuality in modern media. Modern corporations and large companies usually target younger demographics and sexualize them to eventually advertise and profit off of them. “Shapes” is a metaphor about the philosophical question about why as humans we are attracted to certain forms. The 2 notes that are common throughout the album represent a reminder of that idea throughout my life.
Rules - This song is about all of the seemingly impossible “social regulations” teenagers inflict on each other and how it's frustrating to live them out. On social media and in real life it seems there are so many different things we have to do to fit in.
Screens - This is a song about the deteriorating attention span and patience in people through social media, and the eventual decline in mental health as a result. It's also a song about the insecurities that come with using social media, and how certain social interactions can feel desperate at times.
Mating Season - This song is another song about the exploitation of young people in modern media, and how we are constantly fueled with sexual content and even encouraged to have constant pleasure in our lives. It also explores how we are becoming more and more like animals, doing mindless and uncivilized things at an alarming rate.
It Comes in Waves - This is a song about my experience with depression, how sometimes it comes and goes without reason. It also explores how I feel isolated, even if other people are going through the exact same thing.
My Obsession - This is a song about my experience with OCD. It's a song about how I tend to obsess over people and overthink conversations. It's also a song about how it's very difficult to deal with this mental illness in the context of social media, and how as people we are constantly trying to seek validation.
You've Changed - This is a song about a person I once knew that doesn't feel like the same person anymore. It's also about presenting yourself as someone who you're not, and when you reveal your true self people don't like you anymore.