I Blame Finals...and the World
If you're a college student, these symptoms are likely familiar to you. Dread. Panic. Overconsumption of caffeine. It’s finals season.
To be honest, I’m not one for panicking over exams. Either I pass them or I don’t. Thankfully, it’s always been the former. While I’m not worried about passing my classes, I still can’t help but feel a bit of existential dread as the spring semester of my senior year comes to a close. Did I choose the right school? The right major?
The end of a semester always seems to heighten these feelings of anxiety and bring a sense of what am I doing with my life? Thankfully, I have a new album to accompany my finals induced nihilistic / existentialist feelings.
"I Blame The World" is Sasha Alex Sloan’s latest album and the perfect accompaniment for angsty feelings as you ponder your existence and all your life’s choices to date. Continuing on the same path she carved out on her previous album “Only Child”, Sloan keeps the same emotional feel to her music by writing songs that feel almost like diary entries. Lyrics demonstrate her vulnerability while soft vocals drive a sense of intimacy.
There’s something to relate to on each of the 11 tracks. I feel like I’m in Sloan’s head as lays out her insecurities. Yes, “being an adult is fucking hard” and yes, “there’s nothing you can do to make me hate me more than I hate myself”. The album has the energy of going on a rant sesh with your bestie as you tiredly complain about how hard life is. Except here, your bestie is Sasha Alex Sloan.
To some, these rant seshes / lyrics may come across as repetitive in theme, or trite and cliche. However, I think they express what a lot of people feel but maybe don’t want to recognize in themselves. To me, that’s the beauty of the album. The bare laying out of insecurities. The standing there saying this is it. This is how I feel. We’ve all felt cynical, heartbreak and love, and been angry at both the world and ourselves.
Instead of being like "me and my favorite artist share a favorite color," I share existential dread with Sloan. Listening to these songs felt like she took the thoughts out of my head and ripped the pages from my journal. "I Blame The World" is a masterpiece of an album that I have had on repeat and will continue to have on as I prep for finals.
Coffee cup in hand, I raise a toast to my fellow college students out there. May we finish this semester strong and with As on our transcripts.