Drew the Architect :: I Never Thought

Sometimes I just want to chill.

I had never heard of Drew the Architect before writing a review of “I Never Thought,” and you might argue that’s really bad given it came out 10 years ago. Wait though — bad for who? It’s clearly not bad for Drew as they’ve continued to produce music and collaborate on tracks with other producers. This Florida musician has dozens of albums other than this one. Bad for me? No. Thousands upon thousands of albums come out every year. There’s no human way to listen to let alone review them all. I’m not sure AI could do it either and I’d shudder to see how soulless such an attempt would be.

Song titles like “Anything Else, Before I Go?” are asking the better questions. It’s not “bad” if you or I discover an album over a decade after it was released. It’s “bad” if Drew the Architect had decided not to make it all just because of the impossible odds of being heard or noticed in the democratized digital landscape. Drew asked what else could be done and they kept on doing it instead of waiting for the answer to come. Songs like “Just Keep In Mind” are a mental holiday — allowing you to lay on a beach chair and smell the salty ocean breeze with a cold drink sitting on the glass table next to you.

There’s no expectation on “I Never Thought” that any of this music is world changing. It’s not up its own ass about how important it is. Drew is just a musician with some good ideas, good samples, and good equipment to mix it all together. Sometimes that’s all life needs to be. Music can be chill. It can be the book you re-read just because it’s a familiar friend. It can be the shirt that fits comfortably even if there’s a hole in it somewhere. It can be level 1-1 of Super Mario Bros. with or without holding down the B button. I argue for without. Slow down, take your time, see the world, relax and enjoy it. “I Never Thought” is the slow food of music.