REVIEW: Shapeshifter Zachary Mason Turns His Hand to 80s Rock in Authentic Single “Sweetheart”
REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY KATIE SLATER ☆
SINGER-SONGWRITER ZACHARY MASON IS A MUSICIAN DRIVEN BY WRITING—He surfaced as part of the lockdown era of DIY track production and composition that brought the likes of Kenya Grace and PinkPantheress. Creating over 200 demos in 2021, Mason widely creates across genres, driven by experimentation over convention.
His steadily growing discography recently saw the addition of “Sweetheart,” a rock track created in his home studio. Acclaimed collaborators such as Little Big Town’s John Thomasson and Rose Hill Drive’s Nate Barnes come together to create a track fused with influence.
Lulling you into a false sense of gentle tranquility, the track begins with ambient arpeggios and swims in reverb. As the song drifts forwards with this single guitar, the beat remains obscure as sustained notes float over one another. When Mason’s vocals enter, they are double tracked and soothing. His voice feels as though it enters from afar, the cool delivery reminiscent of Alex Turner’s iconic delivery in Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino.
The dreamy sound of this opening matches the lyrical content perfectly. It’s a song created with the purest intention—Mason sings only of the idyllic feeling of being head over heels in love. With a nostalgic sweetness to his words, the track intensifies this sentimentality as it transitions into a strongly 80s inspired classic rock sound.
As the hazy soundscape fades into silence, arresting power chords seize hold of the space, replacing the floating sustain with heavy distortion. Exploding into the track shortly after, a rock beat is played with attack, driving a strong beat into the previously lulling music.
From here, the energy stays high until they very end. Still glowing in his perfect love, Mason’s words simply transform from sweetly appreciative, to passionately engaged.
Several high-energy guitar solos create engaging lyrical breaks, adding an edge of Noel Gallagher to the 80s inspired guitar work. The familiar mixture of pentatonic riffs, bend and release patterns and improvisatory feel are combined with off-beat riffs breathes new energy into nostalgic tropes.
An artist known for shapeshifting, the rock conventions of “Sweetheart” act as a perfect home for Zachary Mason’s songwriting flare. A track that manages to look backwards while moving forwards, the roaring guitars soundtrack a message of simple love captured with remarkable purity.
