Ty Listens to Ben Kweller's "Cover the Mirrors"

Ben Kweller released his latest album last Friday. I have been a fan of his since back when RD and I lived in a townhouse together. This was the early 2000's. He showed up on MTV2 one day, when they showed videos, and it blew me away. He played this power pop mixed with rock and even some folk that sang to me from the first moment I heard his voice. His band is great too, but there's something about Kweller's music that I really, really enjoy.

I have been listening and following his music ever since, even getting to see him live a few times, and he puts on a great live show. But, during the pandemic, he stopped making music for a bit. I had no idea what was going on. He went totally silent on social media and, in around 2023, the music just stopped. When I went and researched it a little more, I read some tragic news about him and his family. Their child was killed in an automobile accident. I cannot even fathom how upsetting and brutal that is for the surviving parents. It all made sense why he had stopped doing pretty much anything. I wouldn't have been shocked if he stopped right then and there. But he didn't. His new record, "Cover the Mirrors" is as tragic as it is awesome.

The record, from my three full listens to this point, is about dealing with the grief and anxiety and depression and everything that comes with losing a very close loved one. The record is heartbreaking. With each song it just seems to get sadder and sadder. But, in only a way that Ben Kweller can do, he finds ways to make some of the songs sound chipper and poppy. For example, "Optymistic" has a hard rocking vibe to the music. It's only when you listen to the lyrics you realize how sad the song truly is. "Oh Dorian" is about as heartbreaking as it gets, that was his kids' name, but it has this old school country/bluegrass vibe. It sounds like something he could have recorded on his wildly underrated "Changing Horses" album. But damn if that song doesn't choke me up every single time I hear it. Even a song like "Depression", which should tell you what exactly the song is about, has this groovy vibe throughout the whole song. And then we have the songs that are straight up sad through and through. "Going Insane" is a piano ballad that lets you know the vibe right off the bat, as it leads off the record. "Dollar Store" is tragic when you find out what he is saying in the song.

Look, this record is good because Ben Kweller is one of the best songwriters in the game right now. He knows how to write, how to put it to music and how to make it all sound so good in the final cut. He has always been one of the best writers out there. He also has a voice that works so well with how he writes and plays. But this record is truly, truly tragic. It is rough when you really break it down and read what each song is about. But I don't know what else you'd expect when you know how horrific his family's situation is at the moment. To Kweller's credit, he has gone on tour and been very open about everything. If anything, this record just solidifies how great of a musician Kweller is through and through. Yes, the record is sad, but I highly recommend it to everyone. Ben Kweller is one of the best. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.