New York-based group The New Students venture into a satiating blend of folk, Americana, and bluegrass across their new album Little Blue Dot, following up 2020’s COVID-inspired full-length Quarantunes. “This album has been percolating with us for a long time,” they explain. “We wrote one of the songs over a decade ago, some we’ve been playing live for a few years, and some are more recent.” Despite the distance between releases, the project picks up right where they left off — with grippingly melodic songwriting, balancing laid-back adoration and social commentary in its lyrical focuses.
In their aim to write songs that emanate a call for empathy, The New Students also produce a poignant concern across various topics. “These songs speak to what we think are some of the universal concerns we all have on this little blue dot floating in space: fear for the future of our planet, the vanishing American Dream, love found and lost,” the band says.
“Black Earth Country” kickstarts the album with riveting pushes of strings, embracing a country-set darkness as the vocals proclaim “I come from the Black Earth Country.” “You can’t take the hunger from his eyes,” they continue into a multi-layered enthusiasm, depicting the journey from farm-set solitude to a “down the road,” trek. Another highlight, “Farewell” struts a lusher vocal harmoniousness and laid-back folk arsenal, dreaming of a place “where the trains don’t run,” with an idyllic sense of escapism.
The standout “Greta’s Song” embraces one’s personal role in positive change. “We are the change, and change is coming closer everyday,” the vocals exude amidst frolicking guitars, prancing with an effervescent charm. Timely in its pressing for empathy and consideration for the future, Little Blue Dot is a compelling album from The New Students.
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“Farewell” is also featured in the genre-based, best-of Spotify compilation Emerging Indie Folk.
