NowStreaming Jenny Kern I Never Thought That You Were Listening

JENNY KERN I NEVER THOUGHT THAT YOU WERE LISTENING

Jenny Kern’s new EP “I Never Thought That You Were Listening” packs more emotion in four songs than it has any right to. The New York-based singer/songwriter steps out with honest music that is a study on the despairing drag of loneliness and the perseverance it takes to get through it.

The four songs here are full of ambience and lush tones, creating a sort of atmospheric pop that Kern’s smooth vocal makes even more lucid. “Alone” opens the EP and right away you get a feel for what kind of place Kern is in mentally and emotionally. She sings lines that include “I’m in the dark/ I feel so far/ so far from home,” “All that’s gone and all that’s lost is all I know” and flat out “I don’t want to be alone.” It may sound kind of too on the head—and, sure, maybe it is—but that’s just Kern being honest and straightforward. Most talented performers get away with straightforward lyrics because they deliver them with a kind of sincerity that make you really believe them—and that’s what Kern does.

“Alone,” like the other songs on “I Never Thought That You Were Listening,” is heartfelt and creates a swelling, emotive mood. It’s hard not to think of Sarah McLachlan when listening to Kern sing. She manages to tuck her vocals into melodies and somehow also float above them at the same time. She mixes it up a bit in “Run” by including techno-inspired programmed beats faintly in the background with a catchy synth hook, but it doesn’t feel fake or manufactured thanks to her emotional vocal delivery when she sings “I don’t want to lose you now/We’ve only just begun.”

In “Where Did The Time Go,” the loneliness and its accompanying anxiety become too much to bear as Kern almost gives in to getting a “pack.” She stops herself with a pep talk, singing, “for the first time I was so anxious/but that’s no cure for loneliness.” Kern continues to struggle seeing the light in “Coming Back for Me” when she comments on the lack of support she has by singing simply, “no one’s coming back for me.” At times you may feel weird listening to it, like you’re eavesdropping in on someone’s therapy session and in a way, you are.

Although there is definite sadness and a sense of not knowing where one belongs on “I Never Thought That You Were Listening,” it’s not necessarily a downer of a listen. Instead, it’s more like a reassurance that you’re not alone if you’re feeling the same way. Call it misery loves company if you want, but that would be selling it short. Kern captures the feeling perfectly, and gives some hint of healing and a determination to get better in “Run” when she sings “I won’t be the one to run.”

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