A review of Role Model’s album Kansas Anymore | Emily Stabell
Tucker Pillsbury. If that name wasn’t pop-star material enough, try Role Model.
The 27-year-old Maine native’s second studio album, Kansas Anymore combines heartbreak with nostalgia, folk rock with heartfelt ballads, the midwest with the northeast.
Best known for his 3 year relationship with internet icon Emma Chamberlin, this album highlights his way of navigating life after the breakup.
His most popular songs being three songs from Kansas Anymore, a cover of The 1975’s “Somebody Else”, or “blind” a song from his 2020 EP “our little angel”.
Kansas Anymore feels like a step into Tucker’s brain. A swarm of emotions, delicately woven into a folksy-bedroom pop mix. With 13 songs, spanning 41 minutes, one can get to know him in a short amount of time. This is the perfect fall album. (and winter, spring, and summer).
Starting off strong with track one, “Writing’s On The Wall”, an upbeat introduction to the album, with lines like Dad’s on the phone, and he’s lecturing me/’Bout a girl that he met back when he was nineteen, and Writing’s on the wall, I pretend I can’t read/You’re forgetting me. Right from the get-go we understand how he feels post-breakup.
Track two, “Look At That Woman”, is a cutesy but jabbing song about coping through the breakup. He uses the term ‘red-eye’ as a double meaning- a late night plane ride or a cheap whiskey. Lines like “Ooh-ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh, look at that woman/breaking my heart, and Spend my nights all alone/’Til I snap and buy a red-eye home. Another song with sad lyrics with a happy backtrack.
Track three, “Scumbag” is a reflection of how Model sees himself. He refers to himself as a “setback”, “stain on the kitchen floor”, “trainwreck” and even “a side no one’s rooting for”. It’s almost like he’s asking why he was ‘chosen’ to be in this relationship. Lines like “Why you stand by me?” and “I’m hardly your man”. This song starts to look more into his thought process post-breakup. And it wouldn’t be a Role Model song if it wasn’t a cheery upbeat song with sad, sad lyrics.
Track four, “Oh, Gemini” is a subtle shift in the album, slowing things down with a softer tone. My favorite lines are, “But, without you, what am I? Oh Gemini/Please remember my name”. This feels like letting go for the first time in the album so far, but not forgetting. Model wants to leave the memories behind but not erase them.
Track five, “Frances”. Where to even start. When I listen to music it baffles me to think about the singer having actually felt and understood how I feel. Knowing that makes it feel so real and also knowing that Emma’s middle name is frances… The chorus is personally my favorite part of the song, letting Model have the heartbreak but is able to reminisce with a smile on his face. This song feels like the first step forward. A love song for a past love.
Track six, “Superglue” is an upbeat ballad where Model is starting to acknowledge the faults in the relationship and mentions the need for superglue for the couple to stick together. “A little bit of superglue/stick by my side”.
Track seven “The Dinner”, gives a creative insight to Model’s new life in L.A. Quippy lines like, “I click my heels three times, oh/We’re not in Kansas anymore”, referencing both the album title and The Wizard of Oz. The chorus consists of three lines, a repeated yodel of “take me home” alluding to his sense of feeling out-of-place in possibly both the scary world that is Los Angeles and the scary feeling of being alone after a breakup.
Track eight “Deeply Still In Love” is the most known song off the album for its lyrics “Well, I heard you might’ve found somebody new/I still can’t swallow it/But I think I’m proud of you”. This song is like Model’s confession to his ex, him still being in love but accepting the breakup.
Track nine “Slut Era Interlude” explores the feeling of seeking physical comfort after a breakup. It dives into wanting a physical connection without the emotional commitment. The track feels slow and tender, adding a personal feel with lyrics like “I’m not tryna be your man, just don’t want to sleep alone”.
Track ten “So Far Gone (feat. Lizzy McAlpine)”. I LOVE THIS SONGGGGG. The only song on the album as a duet, and with none other than Lizzy McAlpine. Their voices blend so beautifully together this song feels like a lullaby. The lyrics on the other hand… the song consists of the two singing about flaws in the other person, giving the listener a feel for how Model’s ex might be feeling. The lyric “If you wanted me to know, you should’ve told me” shows the unspoken feelings that follow after a breakup. Honestly one of the best duets I’ve heard in a long time.
Track 11 “Slipfast”, is another upbeat song where this time Model is reflecting on his characteristic of getting swept away in a relationship, maybe a little too quickly. Lyrics like “I love to slip fast get carried away/slip fast get carried away, away, away” and “Oh, my God what I’d pay to just/run away from this/let me pay for it later” show his tendency to ‘get carried away’ and worry about things later.
Track 12 “Compromise”, sounds like a balland from Model to Model. The chorus is my favorite part of the song, because it feels like Model is accepting both the breakup and his role in it. “Well, I know most things end in a disaster for ya/But I’m still keeping all my hopes up high/You deserve a happy ever after, don’t ya?/After all the tears you’ve cried/Don’t you compromise”. It feels like a hug, a knowing nod to his past self.
Track 13 “Something, Somehow, Someday”, closes off the album with a slow melody, and even cuter lyrics. Model spends the song comparing him and his ex, his comparisons negative with words like “bad dream”, “loose cannon”, and “fixer-upper” whereas he describes her as a “honeymoon vacation” and a “plane ride home”. The chorus, “Yeah I believe, they’re meant to be/Something, Somehow, Someday” gives the listener a newfound sense of hope in a way, but it also closes the album off in a perfect circle. We started with the post-breakup upbeat but sad songs, moved into deeper, slower songs, and ended with acceptance and growth. It feels like we were sitting in the backseat of the relationship.
Currently on tour, People Magazine’s runner-up to Sexiest Musician winner Harry Styles, Tucker continues through the second place loss singing in places like Europe, New Zealand, Australia, and the United States. Can’t wait to see what he does next.
Photo courtesy of Genius
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