Maggie Rogers - Heard It In A Past Life

When describing Maggie Rogers, the term "free spirit" easily and repeatedly comes to mind. She debuted her interesting style of combining the natural, earthy aspect of Folk with the upbeat brightness of Pop/Electronic Dance music in her EP, released a few years ago. Her music is so light and fluid that it makes you want to let your hair down, close your eyes, and dance around the room, or out in a field. You could say that she brings out the hippie in all of us, despite having such a modern sound compared to the Folk and Blues Rock classics of the 60s and 70s.

The album starts off with the bright and groovy "Give A Little," which sets the mood with a free-flowing and blissful energy. The lyrics are actually an interesting fit for the song. The chorus sings "If you give a little, get a little, maybe we could get to know each other...and if you give a little, get a little, maybe we could learn to love each other." It initially implies the beginnings of a romantic relationship. However, it could also be looked at as her speaking to her audience; particularly to listeners that aren't familiar with her. Additionally, towards the end, Rogers says "No one knows me and no one knows you, You don't know me I don't know you, Everything's fresh yeah everything's new...There's a whole new world just waiting baby, so much waiting just for me and you." It's like she's inviting the listeners, strangers, to leave everything behind for a time so they can enjoy some music together.

She tones it down a little in "Overnight." This seems almost like the testimony of someone who avoids commitment; for the reason that "people change overnight." Yet Rogers is struggling with this rule of hers when it comes to the person she's talking about in the track. Though "Give A Little" does well in settling the overall mood, I think "Overnight" is when we first get to fully listen to and appreciate her beautiful, velvet vocals. In that way, I feel that we hear and feel more of her soul in the music. Through Twitter, it's also the song that Rogers said she was the most excited to share, as well as the one she was most satisfied with in terms of vocal production.

"The Knife," fitting to its title, melodically has a bit of an almost seductive edge to it. It's essentially about letting go and pouring out everything in your life by dancing and enjoying time with friends "after dark, after light."

"Alaska" is the song that initially got Rogers a burst of attention by showcasing her love of nature and her newfound appreciation for dance music. This is both through the music and the music video, which features a colorful dance party taking place in the woods. The song debuted on her first EP, Now That The Light Is Fading, and showed listeners that she has a truly new, unique style all her own. It's probably #1 on the list of her songs that make you want to run and dance through forests and creeks.

The first single of Heard It In A Past Life was "Light On." Listening to this song really makes you feel...light. Almost like taking a breath of fresh air after living in smog. As joyful as it feels, here she talks about her sudden and rapid rise to stardom and the intense stress associated with it. This is clear early on with the lines "I couldn't stop it, tried to slow it all down. Cryin' in the bathroom, had to figure it out. With everyone around me sayin' 'you must be so happy now.'" It draws attention to the damage that can be caused when such intense changes occur so suddenly in one's life, even if those changes are exactly what that person dreamed of eventually accomplishing. Despite Rogers's ambition to have a career as an artist, the level of attention she got was more than what she bargained for. Addressing the misconception that this kind of success brings only happiness, during the verses she asks the listeners questions like "Would you believe me now, if I told you I got caught up in a wave? Almost gave it away. Would you hear me out, if I told you I was terrified for days? Thought I was gonna break." But in the chorus, it's like she's addressing her fans, saying that if they keep giving her love, she'll keep responding to it. Even if they leave her she says it's okay; likely one of the many situations that she stressed over. Essentially she's saying that she's figuring out these issues and pushing through well.

"Past Life" acts as the interlude that temporarily brings the mood down to a sentimental, melancholy, piano + vocal piece. This is where she decides to sit back and allow the raw sadness to flow out of her; with just a hint of hopefulness peeking through at the end. Gently, the tempo is brought back up with the mellow slow jam, "Say It," which talks of an infatuation that happens to quickly.

"On + Off" is another song from Rogers's EP. In a catchy, uplifting, and even flirtatious way, she's essentially asking you to help her find a form of refuge, or even be her refuge.

"Fallingwater" is arguably one of the most stunningly crafted songs in this album. In a note written by Rogers, she said that it was "about giving everything and not knowing if it's enough. It's about the power of vulnerability-a cry for help and a battle cry at the same time" (atwoodmagazine.com). Lyrically, it's similar to "Light On" in that it seems to reference the crushing pressure of being suddenly thrown into fame. Immediately it starts with an uptempo yet sentimentally soulful sound; created by deep electronic beats and piano accompanied by Rogers's vocals. Then starting with the first chorus, it gains a fuller sound with ambient effects that can almost resemble a choir humming. These effects flow into the second verse; during which the beat strengthens to mimic clapping hands and stomping feet. This guarantees that whether or not you were snapping your fingers earlier, you'll be clapping and stomping along now. The bridge momentarily settles down, only to slowly build back up to the chorus where drums are now pounding intensely. This whole time throughout the music video, Rogers has been featured dancing in the desert. But at this part, the scenery changes to a rainstorm at night; yet she continues to dance her heart out, adding even more of the powerful emotion that the song already possessed. To end, most of the instrumental drops out to leave the focus on Rogers's layered backup singing and her stunning fronted vocalizing.

"Retrograde" is a very synth-driven track that while sounding very upbeat and fun, manages to once again give a glimpse into the tormented soul behind it, as the lyrics discuss the struggle of being beaten down by day to day life. "Burning" follows as a liberating dance track about a person who helped Rogers rise and break through the aforementioned turmoil that she experienced.

Closing out the album is "Back In My Body," a lighter yet powerful Pop song about the times Rogers lost herself and tried to come back. But also that this time around, she's confident that she's found herself again. A fitting end to this chapter of her story.

Words used a few times throughout this review were "free," "liberating," "light," etc. because that's exactly what this music is and does. Despite some heavier subject matter, the songs are made so you can listen and feel like your head is clearing; like for even for a short time you can let everything else in life go. And just dance.

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