A melodic melding of synths and guitar complements a life-phase introspection within “What’s Next?” — the new single from Reduction in Force. The San Diego-based project of Mike Mills excels here with a sound bridging past nostalgia and current energy — with shades of Depeche Mode, The Killers, and MGMT in its powerful sound. For the track itself, Mills describes it as “a song about wrestling with the realization that your Second Act has always been your First Love—that moment when the path you’ve been on no longer defines you.” He continues: “It’s about knowing when it’s time to take the leap.”
The project title itself is a reference to the corporate terminology, referencing the elimination of jobs, often on a large scale. Mills’ personal reinvention, and this path into a more artist-driven realm, is channeled into both his music and in written form. Mills has an insightful LinkedIn blog, chronicling his Corporate to Creative (C2C) experience and embracing this next-stage role as a musician and creator; he describes music as “his first love,” and this “Second Act” in life embodies that.
Joining Mills in the project is Alex Aldi (Passion Pit, Dreamers, Goo Goo Dolls). They succeed with an anthemic hook-ready vigor within, infusing soaring guitars and steady synth propulsions amidst lyrical ruminations — “how about just getting through the day?” questioning follows perspectives of more youthful ambitions, as a title-referencing questioning takes hold in the invigorating chorus, urging to “take a breath,” as the next act in one’s life begins. “What’s Next?” is a rousing, replay-inducing success from Reduction in Force.
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This and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
We discovered this release via MusoSoup.
