7/10

After finding his feet with a wondrous array of gems these last few months, Los Angeles-based artist Hush Bewlay steps into the spotlight with 'The Age Of Recognition', a restless and intimate debut album that balances raw honesty with stylistic ambition. Following the 2022 EP 'I’m A Stranger Here Myself' and standalone track 'Bring It Down', this new release sees him returning in fine form throughout, scratched out between late-night revelations and the quiet, uncomfortable process of personal growth.

Across its lo-fi, DIY edges and tightly packed layers, 'The Age Of Recognition' finds its strength in contradiction; both punchy and introspective, referential and original, fun yet thoughtful. Bewlay wrestles with the messiness of adulthood, such as how we define ourselves, how we show up in our relationships, how we try and often fail to understand who we are under the noise.

There’s a palpable nod to post-punk urgency in the sharp guitar stabs and off-kilter grooves, but Bewlay doesn’t live in nostalgia. Synth textures inspired by ’80s pop culture flicker across tracks like 'Ego Death', while rhythms grounded in today’s streaming-era beats keep things firmly contemporary. It’s a sound that straddles the dance floor and the therapist’s office.

What ties it all together is Bewlay’s captivating vocals. Whether crooning, pleading, or winking through a wry lyric, there’s always an undercurrent of sincerity here. It’s this refusal to fully commit to cynicism, even when dissecting modern life’s absurdities, that gives 'The Age Of Recognition' its heart.