Review: Lunar Vacation masters the art of organic collaboration in their sophomore album, “Everything Matters, Everything’s Fire.”

Lunar Vacation masters the art of organic collaboration in their sophomore album, “Everything Matters, Everything’s Fire.” The album title, which also serves as the thesis for the work, is succinctly captured in just nine tracks. The tunes each waver on a scale of what I’d call upbeat grit to bedroom day-dreaminess. An overarching sense of home is apparent in the record and speaks to what makes the group so special. 

Photo: Alexa Viscius

The Decatur-based band notably lives together in the home where the record was written. As I listened in my car, through my earbuds, and just plain out-of-my-laptop-speakers, one thing stood out from the work as a whole: it envelops the listener. This is an immersive album in the sense that you almost feel you are in the room and part of the music itself, likely a testament to the approach to production for this album cycle. Vocalist/guitarist Maggie Gleeson noted that they “embraced mistakes” throughout the recording process. 

The simple, yet personal lyrics are that of poetic conversationalism; phrases and sentiments you might overhear at a coffee shop, share with a friend, or write in your journal. The writing has a simplicity to it that rings out deeply profound. Tunes like Better Luck and Fantasy tug gently at the heart in reminiscence; “The sun starts coming up as the credits roll on through,” lead vocalist Gep sings in Fantasy. “Happiness is coming, and it was never with me,” rawly put in Better Luck.

Songs like Sick, Just for Today, and Tom drive the lighter, more playful edge of the album. (Check out the band’s Substack for a juicy hint at the inspiration for Tom here.) However, the sentiment that “Everything matters, everything’s fire,” featured full-circle in the closing track, You Shouldn’t Be, is a common thread throughout. The sophomore record is a rich collection of lyrical and musical exploration that perfectly charts the masterful art of collaboration that Lunar Vacation continues to achieve.