You Are The Morning

_{One of my favourite albums from January!}

You Are The Morning is jasmine.4.t’s debut album, and what a debut it issss! jasmine.4.t (Jasmine Cruickshank) is a Manchester based singer-songwriter and she is the first UK-based artist signed to Saddest Factory Records. If you don’t know what Saddest Factory Records is… where have you been? This is a record label owned by nonother than Phoebe Bridgers in partnership with Dead Oceans (another record label based in the US).

As soon as I heard that boygenius had produced an album for an upcoming artist, I ran to Spotify. You can definitely hear the boygenius influence within this album but it never takes the spotlight over Jasmine’s incredible vocals and songwriting skills. Another amazing component of this album is Jasmine’s openness of life as a trans woman shown through her beautifully poetic lyricism. I feel that it just adds that extra sparkle to this already incredibly well manufactured album.

Here is my song by song review of You Are The Morning!

Kitchen

Jasmine’s phrasing in this song is so lovely. It almost feels like she’s going to run out of breath but she executes each phrase perfectly. The lyricism is excellent, I knew immediately that I was going to LOVE this album. The tone and harmonies are so beautiful, even the way she annunciates her words really tickles something in my brain. I also love how crisp the guitar sounds and it really made me excited to hear the production of the rest of the album (everyone say thank you boygenius). Overall, what a way to start an album!

Skin on Skin

This is probably my favourite song on the album for a couple of different reasons. It’s a song about sex but it’s not that obvious, it’s very nuanced and beautiful. It’s a song about fucking but it’s so poetic. I absolutely loooooove the chorus, the imagery is vivid but it doesn’t feel vulgar. The imagery paired with the tonality of the guitar has made this chorus my favourite ever section of any song, I don’t know what it is but it just makes me feel things. I know that Jasmine made an Instagram post stating that the song was about T4T love and I think it just makes this song that little bit more special than your regular degular songs about doing the deed.

Highfield

This is the first song that has a slower pace and a melancholic feel. I usually find a song without a chorus pretty boring and a little hard to follow but I really love this song. The first thing that really stood out to me in this song was the classic boygenius harmonies. The harmonies remind me of those in “Ketchum, ID” from the boygenius EP and I think they work beautifully in this song. You can also hear the inspiration taken from Phoebe Bridgers, specifically “Chelsea” from Stranger in the Alps, the tonality of the acoustic guitar is so similar in both songs. While I am making these comparisons and connections I just want to make it clear that Jasmine’s artistry is 100% original and her own but you can absolutely hear where inspiration has been taken from in some songs and that is definitely not a bad thing.

Breaking in Reverse

This is a lovely little song. There’s quite a lot going on in the composition but it’s very subtle and you probably wouldn’t notice it if you weren’t looking for it or paying close attention. There’s a few little piano flurries and electric guitar riffs in the background, especially as the song gets closer to the end. I love noticing things like this because it really makes you appreciate how much work goes into mixing and mastering a song.

Such a wholesome love song with lyrics that I feel could be interpreted in a few different ways. I think it’s about being in love with your friend and knowing you could treat them how they deserve and not knowing if they feel the same way but you will be there for them regardless. Some lyrics resonate with me as a love song to myself (‘You deserve much better, You deserve much better than what he gave you, Wish I coulda saved you’). These lyrics make me think about the abusive relationship I was in from the ages of 18 to 20 and how I wish I could go back and save my past self from all the trauma. A very bittersweet song.

Best Friend’s House

The first thing I thought when I listened to this song for the first time was how much I miss my best friend. She lives in Edinburgh and I live in Manchester so I very rarely see her. This song makes me think of when I was 17 in college and I used to go to my best friend’s flat so much that I ended up buying a pair of pyjamas so that I would always have some if I spontaneously slept over.

Guy Fawkes Tesco Dissociation

First of all, LOVE the name. I’m not a country music fan except for the 4 minutes and 36 seconds of this song. Not to take anything away from Jasmine but looking at my notes I have written “PHOEBE PLEASE RELEASE NEW SOLO MUSIC” and I just felt like that should be included while we’re praising this song. My interpretation of this song is that it’s about having a panic attack and that weird dissociation you get after and it’s just so weird because you feel like your floating and not really in your body (does anyone else get this?)… but it’s such a boppy little tune. Also in my notes I’ve written “Panic! At The Supermarket” which should really be this song’s alternate title. This is probably my second favourite song on the album. I’ve been having the WORST time with my mental health, specifically anxiety, and this song really encapsulates the struggles of being mentally ill and the dark thoughts that come with it but soundtracked to a fun lil tune!

Tall Girl

I don’t really have much to say about this song to be honest. I love the tune and I love that this album has a few really short songs, it’s very fun.

New Shoes

I love how raw the vocals sound in this song, it’s pretty gut wrenching. I don’t know what it is about them but I LOVE the lyrics “You is you, I is I, and the interface is stable”. Lucy Dacus’ vocals harmonizing with Jasmine???? S T U N N I N G. I really love the outro and the tonality of the guitar, it’s so gritty and a nice juxtaposition from the rest of the song. At the end you can hear Jasmine crying and I just want to give her a cuddle 🥺

Roan

I really like the robotic harmonies in this. It reminds me of the original “The 1975” from their self-titled album. Jasmine’s lyrics are really just like poetry, I wish I could write songs like she does. Another song without a chorus and it’s just purely beautiful lyrics. She is genuinely so talented, I am in awe!

Elephant

Absolute banger! This is definitely my third favourite song on the album. The song itself is very simple but I love the build-up, it’s so fun and so well done. I feel like the drums really make this song and is probably my favourite component of this one. Another fun insight to my notes while listening to this song – “Aw it’s just so good PLEASE listen to this song”. If you’re going to listen to one song on this album, it should be this one.

Transition

It’s exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a transitional song, there’s not much else to say really. The harmonies are really haunting though.

Woman

Hope you’re ready to cry! Jasmine’s voice on the high notes are so crisp and clear, it’s very satisfying. This is a beautiful little song about being trans and letting yourself be who you are. I love trans joy and I think we should all be consuming more trans media right now but especially the happy stuff.

Top 3 Songs

Skin on Skin
Guy Fawkes Tesco Disscociation
Elephant

My final thoughts are – if you don’t listen to this album (or at least a few songs) then you must hate music that makes you feel things. Please listen to this album!

If you got this far, thank you so much! My style of writing is a little ramble-y but I wanted to keep the essence of my authentic reaction and notes that I made while also appreciating the artistry. If you have anything you want to share, whether it is about my writing or the album, please feel free to leave a comment below! Thanks again xo

Bobbi Listens