Kenny Foster has a knack for crafting surprisingly inviting musical surroundings around uneasy ideas, and “Sideways Apocalypse” might be one of the clearest examples yet. The song explores the quiet experience of watching life become strange, unstable and increasingly difficult to make sense of.
Foster approaches the material with an understated indie-pop sensibility, allowing melody and his relaxed vocal delivery to carry much of the emotional weight. Rather than trying to overpower the listener, his voice has a conversational quality that makes the song feel personal. The song has an unusually soothing character despite being about the slow realization that things have been going wrong for quite some time.
STREAMING:
https://open.spotify.com/track/2v1MTiZSjSpJ94ur1bVxif?si=5d05bf7e9f8b4039
VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/Xqu87J9qQnw?si=yaS-YqDQsEiM1UlS
There is also a slightly warped quality to Foster’s songwriting that keeps the track from becoming conventional singer-songwriter fare. It’s melodic enough to be immediately approachable, but just strange enough around the edges to reflect the uncertainty contained in its title. The arrangement and melodic concept are supported by the track’s understated production. It rarely goes beyond balancing the mix, allowing the dreamy vocals to shine.
The cleverest aspect of the song may therefore be its refusal to make an apocalypse sound particularly apocalyptic. Disaster does not necessarily arrive with explosions and sirens; sometimes normal life simply becomes incrementally more surreal until dysfunction itself begins to feel normal. Even the official video reinforces that interpretation, depicting Foster moving through life as it glitches out around him.
ONLINE:
https://linktr.ee/kennyfoster
https://www.facebook.com/kenneth.n.forrester
https://www.instagram.com/kenneth.n.forrester/
It is another intriguing release from an artist who increasingly seems comfortable operating between indie pop, soft rock and more eccentric experimental songwriting. “Sideways Apocalypse” doesn’t need to scream that everything is falling apart. Foster’s more compelling idea is that perhaps the strangest apocalypse is the one people simply continue living through.