Noted songwriter Michael Flynn readies his third solo album with the reveal of a playful new track "Easy To Love," premiering today on Underground Music Collective. Building on his long-standing brand of euphoric, piano-driven neo-pop, the Asheville-area transplant is slated for an intoxicating return this fall with the release of Survive With Me, a ten-track collection that is as much a universal offering as it is a personal manifesto. Armed with an everflowing imagination and the musical chops to support it, Flynn will treat fans to a new sonic journey on October 13, 2020.
With Survive With Me, Flynn plants his feet firmly on the ground as a class solo act and master lyricist. A pioneer of the celebrated Charleston outfit Slow Runner-which landed in the embrace of SonyBMG and has toured with the likes of The Avett Brothers, Josh Ritter, Built To Spill, and more, he again mines down deep into unknown territory for material so singular and personal it could only exist as a solo album. Known for his eccentric arrangements and sharp storytelling, Flynn's restless honesty ripens on the new release, exploring darker subject matter eerily suited for the times. Gliding seamlessly between intimate confessions, condemnatory observations, and vignettes of his life, Survive With Me is a mature follow up to his 2018 release Pretend Like, and offers listeners an unfiltered look into the mind of a man who is still making sense of the world even after seeing so much of it.
A seasoned songwriter whose discography includes sync placements for a growing list of television soundtracks including Grey's Anatomy and Shameless, Flynn has a knack for encapsulating others' experiences while drawing earnestly from his own. On Survive With Me, he takes a holistic approach, personifying not only his own psyche but those of his loved ones. Unexpected cameos include a portrait of Flynn's close friend in the opening track, "But It Lived," which empathetically explores the battle of recurring mental health challenges, and even an entire tune written from the perspective of Flynn's family dog ("B.O.M.B"), who despite his best efforts, can't quite control his destructive tendencies. Additional musings include the age-old sentiment of running out of time on the contemplative tracks "Too Many Dreams" and "Perfect Crime," meditations on moving states and growing a family ("Saluda" and "Bear Strategies"), and the aspirational lie of unconditional love ("No Promises"). With title track "Survive With Me," Flynn sings about falling in love in an overheated world and rejecting the apathy of previous generations. The song hides anxiety and defiance in deceptively cheerful cadence (a signature tactic of his). Bookended with the lighthearted single, "Easy To Love"-a nod to Flynn's sitcom-esque relationship dynamic-and more deep-seated undertakings like the closing waltz "Satan Take The Wheel," which commiserates with those (inside the music industry and out) who cannot sell their souls in a buyer's market, Survive With Me is a spitfire declaration tied together with a sonically appetizing bow.
Boasting an eclectic lineup of piano, horns, marimba, banjo, and sweeping synth arrangements, the album is an engaging listen from start to finish, and perfectly reinforces Flynn's understated vocal tenor. An effortless balance of enchanting falsetto and tastefully implemented double tracking techniques, the result is a bright new release that brings to mind at once the whimsy of early Ben Folds and the deadpan temperament of Conor Oberst. Grand yet unpretentious, Survive With Me is a powerful step forward for Michael Flynn, who has once again proven that the loudest voices aren't measured by decibel.
Survive With Me from Michael Flynn is available for preorders now on
Bandcamp, and will be released to digital and streaming platforms on Tuesday, October 13, 2020. The single "Easy To Love" will be released digitally tomorrow, Friday, August 7. For more information, visit www.michaelflynn.com
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