The reveal of indie pop band AJR’s newest album, The Maybe Man, definitely caught me by surprise when a short announcement video dropped on the Met brothers’ YouTube channel on August 28. I had not been expecting anything from them after the passing of their father a month before. I had heard that they had cancelled their tour to mourn, so I figured that it might be a while before any new material was released.

But I was wrong and glad to be. AJR is one of my favorite bands right now and I was happy to see that they would be releasing new music. It obviously can’t be easy for them now, but the new album seems to be a way for Adam, Jack, and Ryan to find purpose through their grief and work through it, especially with the tearjerking single, “God Is Really Real,” which released shortly before the announcement of their father’s passing.

A few weeks before the album was scheduled to drop on November 3, AJR announced on their Instagram that the release of The Maybe Man would be pushed back by a week to drop on Nov. 10 instead. This was a bit disappointing to find out the day of Nov. 3 but what was interesting was that this was possibly a reference to a previous song, “Next Up Forever,” which has a lyric describing anxiety over releasing an album and wanting to drop it a week later than it is supposed to. Despite the delay, I was still excited to see what the new album would entail.

The album begins with the song, “Maybe Man,” which had been teased in the announcement video from a few months ago, so it was really cool to hear the full version of it. The song is soft and melancholic, exploring the feeling of wanting to be something else other than yourself but there being drawbacks that may leave you worse off than before. It is such a powerful song to open with and the theme of self and identity is explored throughout the album.

One of the things that this album does so well, just like other AJR music, is their use of open and honest lyrics on emotions. Their lyrics are to the point on how it feels to live in today’s world and deal with the various kinds of struggles that come from it. It makes their music very engaging to listen to and relatable as AJR writes about what we all go through, but may not necessarily express readily.

Several of the songs have a rather eccentric feel to them like “The Dumb Song,” “Hole in the Bottom of My Brain,” and “I Won’t” but their soft, yet upbeat nature keeps them feeling cohesive with the rest of the album’s overall tone of struggling with who you are and want to be.

The song “Inertia” was an interesting electronic number with hip-hop-like elements in the melody. It describes the feeling of going along with the flow of things but more out a sense of apathy and lack of motivation. It really speaks to the idea of having aspirations but not the energy to break the flow of your life to make that change, which fits with the concept of inertia and ennui.

One of the tracks, “Turning Out Pt. iii” connects back to two previous songs by AJR, “Turning Out” on The Click and “Turning Out Pt. ii” on Neotheater respectively. Just like its predecessors, the song deals with love, but a different aspect of it. It goes into the feeling of wanting a relationship with someone but being nervous about it the entire time and everything that does come or may come with the relationship. It is an intriguing thing to see tackled in a song, as most songs about romance describe the great parts or outright toxic parts of a relationship but not the quieter anxieties.

“The DJ Is Crying For Help” might have been one of the most impactful for me in how concerns about job prospects are brought up in the lyrics. The violins and piano are very engaging in this song and definitely make the song stand out, even as it describes a pervasive worry of mine.

The final song, “2085,” talks about getting older and encourages you to get out and do things instead of fretting over who you are because you only have so much time. It brings back part of “Maybe Man” to conclude that you only have yourself and your one life so instead of stressing over who you might be, you have to be yourself and make the most of things. There is a country-like sound that is almost reminiscent of Tiny Tim’s “Tip Toe Thru’ The Tulips With Me” that adds a beautiful levity to the song and underscores the emotion in it.

Listening to this album was very cathartic for me. AJR’s music has gotten more relatable to me over these past years as I go through the years and several hardships. Listening to The Maybe Man is like having a warm blanket wrapped around you in how it acknowledges feelings of depression and anxiety. It helps me to feel that I am not alone in feeling these ways and brings me immense comfort to see it expressed by one of my favorite bands.

AJR announced on Nov. 8 that they will be going on their first arena tour for The Maybe Man in April 2024.