Alexandra Riorden

A sense of optimism adorns the atmosphere of Alexandra Riorden’s second album, Feel at Home. The record chronicles her move from Los Angeles to a small seaside town, a change in scenery that signified a shift not only in her peaceful surroundings, but in the mood of her music, hedging towards a more gentle and refined sound.

When asked about the hopeful nature of her lyrics, Riorden offers a whimsical but telling response. “This album is basically me playing my journals on guitar,” she says. “Moving here stripped back so much of the excess from my life,” she says. “A lot of my time is spent alone and in nature, and I feel like you can really hear that on this album.”

Produced by Omar Velasco (collaborator of Father John Misty, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and Jonathan Wilson), Feel at Home is an introspective and quietly anthemic collection of folk-flavored pop songs that are sweet in sound and punk in essence, its power revealed in big hooks and sharp yet simple lyricism. Featuring Justin Flint on drums, along with Gabe Noel’s (Harry Styles, Kendrick Lamar, Phoebe Bridgers, Feist) lush string arrangements, its tracklist unfurls like a continual stream of prayer, slowly unfolding over carefully crafted layers of instrumentation that hold simplicity and space in the highest regard.

Feel at Home is a love letter to the human spirit, granting permission to seek out magic in the mundane, and teaching us that the smallest acts of compassion are what make us whole.