By Katherine Hatcher | Staff Writer
Shawn Mendes bares the vulnerability of his soul in his new album, “Shawn,” which was released on Nov. 15.
Mendes released 12 songs on this record, which exposes his positive and somber feelings about his experience with love, the music industry, relationships, religion and life in general. Although he dips his toes into new musical elements in this album, some of the songs reflect his stereotypical sound.
The singer is well known for songs with fast paced music, created by a strong presence of drums and electric guitar, such as in his 2015 hit “Stitches.” In this album, the song “Why Why Why” embodies that same style with a lifeline of drums supporting the melody.
Although the new album incorporates some familiarity of Mendes’ typical pop sound, songs like “Heart of Gold,” “The Mountain” and “Heavy,” include a slower guitar. The transition from some of Mendes’ past work to this album parallels the transition from Taylor Swift’s “Lover” to “Folklore.”
In addition to the acoustic guitar, “Isn’t That Enough” also has a harmonica mixed with Mendes’ whistling. Both of these elements create a more country twang that could be compared to the sound of Noah Kahan, an uncharted territory for Mendes.
Mendes also spices up the album with the subjects of his songs through his vulnerable lyrics. Mendes has always worn his heart on his sleeve when it comes to relationships and love, like in “There’s Nothing Holding Me Back,” where he sings, “I wanna follow where she goes/I think about her and she knows it.”
Mendes continues to emit his thoughts on love in some songs, including “Heart of Gold,” “That’s The Dream,” “That’ll Be The Day” and more. These songs are unique because they cause listeners to think complexly about the feelings these tracks evoke. Mendes reminisces about past parts of his love life that are happy and tragic all in the same song. He does this in “That’ll Be The Day” when he sings, “You could move away, you could build a home/With somebody I don’t know, doesn’t matter what you say…/’Til your face turns blue, this love is here to stay.”
Adding to the topics of love in the album, however, Mendes also reveals how he perceives himself instead of only how he sees his partners. In “Why Why Why” he sings, “Opened up my journal to a page/Everything that hurts me’s still the same/Feels like there’s nothin’ new for me to say.”
Mendes is vulnerable about the anxiety and despair he feels in his own life, even with something as precious to him as music. In “Isn’t That Enough” Mendes sings, “My hands still shaking/My mind’s still racing,” revealing his mental state. There is beauty in the pain emitted by Mendes’ words.
Mendes also comments on his view of religion in this album. In the “The Mountain” he refers to a jungle trip he went on where he climbed a mountain as he sings, “And you can say it was drugs/You can say it was God/You can say it was aliens” and “But I saw somethin’ out there/So call it what you want.”
Similarly to “The Mountain,” the singer tackles religion through his beautiful recording of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” In an interview posted on Twitter, Mendes said he had done covers of it many times, but had not really taken into account what the lyrics meant. He said wanted to include the cover because of how he understands the meaning of the song now.
“I never really could grasp the concept of what [Cohen] was reckoned with, which was the idea of God and spirit,” Mendes said. “And at 26, after going through my own kind of relationship with that. Those lyrics just felt so resonant and just felt like the right time.”
Intimidating as it may be, Mendes shows that vulnerability breeds freedom. In a post on Instagram, Mendes said that two years ago he had no idea of who he was, but that writing his music can be medicine.
“A year ago I couldn’t step into a studio without falling into complete panic,” Mendes said. “So to be here right now with 12 beautiful finished songs feels like such a gift.”
Although his songs sometimes come off as generic pop, the openness of this album allows the listener to resonate with some of Mendes’ fears of growing up and realizing that certain parts of life can be complicated and messy. Overall, the album is a beautiful journey to listen to.
