Gus Dapperton – Henge (Album Review)

In his third album, NY native Gus Dapperton offers an evolution of his established sound as Gus pays homage to the 70s’ synth scene while maintaining some of the typical nuances of his discography. With every song produced and written by Gus Dapperton (Except for Sunrise), Gus has some notable star power to assist with the likes of Ian Fitchuk (Until I found You by Stephen Sanchez, Rainbow by Kacey Musgraves), Ethan Gruska (Stranger in the Alps [Album] by Phoebe Bridgers), and Patrick Wimberly (1/2 of Chairlift. SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK by Joji, Little Dark Age by MGMT, Don’t Touch My Hair by Solange). Additionally, Major Al Maskati (1/2 of Majid Jordan) offers his writing expertise in the track Homebody alongside Gus himself.

In his 11 song album (41min), Gus released 5 tracks leading up to the release starting with his track Wet Cement. Produced/written by Gus, the track is an acoustic guitar infused with synth, leaning into Trip Hop, and offers reverb Gus vocals as he sings about the uncertainties of life while living in a dynamic world. As for much of the album (Especially the singles), the track is fairly middle of the road in Gus’ performance. instrumentation, and writing despite finding inspiration in a post-COVID world. Several weeks later, Gus released his follow-up single Horizons produced/written by Gus and Ian Fitchuk. A song about a stranger who is lost and trying to find a way out figuratively, this light, upbeat, synth/guitar pop song offers abstract lyricism and reverb vocals for a boppy listen. Showcasing the album’s duality of contemplative acoustic/synth (Wet Cement) and the dance-centric/synth (Horizons), these two singles best surmise the vibes the album would hold in store.

In the most exciting release in the singles rollout, Don’t Let Me Down finds Gus Dapperton again pairing with BENEE in this Gus produced track written by both artists. Groovy synth, a melodic bass line, heavy voice modulations, and an alternative verse delivery from these artists about not wanting to be hurt again by the same person offers a, yet again, middle of the road experience. Compared to their past collaboration (Supalonely), this track feels a bit empty/hollow compared to the upbeat, light, and carefree nature of Supalonely and instead, offers a similar level of quality as the previous two singles thus far released. Rolling out the next single which would go on to be the opener for the album, Sunset, is a Gus Dapperton produced/written track that offers a light and delicate guitar intro before transitioning to a noisy pop/grandiose orchestral synth concoction for a dynamic and ever-changing sounding song. Messy but charming with its reverb vocals, shrill high notes, and lyricism about feelings of isolation and desperation, Gus’ choice of an intro song and single highlights his intention of Henge being a maturity of sound for the artist. The most creatively risk choice made yet, Sunset might not payoff as an accessible sound but is the freshest song in the singles released given its ambition and intention.

Finishing off the releases of singles, Homebody is a Gus Dapperton and Ian Fitchuk produced track written by Gus, Ian, and Majid Al Maskati for an electropop influenced beat with synth, a punchy bass, modulated vocals, and lyricism about giving their everything to this individual who is simply a homebody. Fairly straightforward in sound and lyricism, despite the fresh nature of an electropop influenced song, it still feels hollow and middle of the road, ending the pre-album run with a whimper before the eventual release. Unfortunately for the project, the strongest songs on the project wouldn’t be found in its single but, instead, in its deep cuts.

The Stranger, produced/written by Gus Dapperton and Ethan Gruska, is the strongest/best song on the album, offering a disorientating, stylistic, and groovy synth instrumental with abstract lyricism about wanting their person to give them a second chance and let their new self come out. A classic Gus sounding track that feels evolved with his sound, The Stranger feels like the best example of where Gus wanted to take their musical direction toward with this album yet mostly missed the mark of interest until this take. Spent On You, produced/written by Gus Dapperton, is an upbeat, boppy, punchy, synth-centric track, again, with abstract lyricism about wanting to make things right but feeling as if they’ve used all of what they had on this person. Dynamic range of vocal deliveries, this track again feels like a success for the intention Gus had on the album, perfectly fusing his vocals/sound with a new era of his discography. Closing out the album and the highlights with Sunrise, produced by Ian Fitchuk and written by Gus, Ian Fitchuk and the featured artist, Ocean Vuong, this track in fact doesn’t contain lyrics from Gus but, instead, is a spoken word verse from Ocean. Lyrics about existentialism, existence, meaning, and longevity are beautifully performed over a synth/piano instrumental that perfectly closes and juxtaposes to the intro, Sunset, both thematically and sonically.

The only other track outshining the singles, Midnight Train, produced/written by Gus Dapperton and Ian Fitchuk, is a boppy, 70s’ adjacent track with heavy modulated vocals singing about not being able to trust themselves because of their vices getting in the way. Despite being mostly just fine, there is a certain endearing and nostalgic feel to this track which elevates it above average for a fun and easy listen. As for the rest of the album, the remaining tracks Phases and Lights are just as memorable and of similar quality as the singles which is to say fairly middle of the road, slightly above average, but mostly forgettable.

While not all that dissimilar to his previous discography, Henge definitely finds Gus attempting to find his love for music again by focusing more on a feeling than anything else. In a fairly accessible album to the masses given its nostalgic inspiration, Gus’ album is a mostly cohesive album mainly in its sound and somewhat in its thematics and lyricism. While the features don’t much standout (Except for Ocean Vuong), Gus showcases his ability to produce, write, and experiment sightly with his vocals and delivery for a fresh evolution of talent.

Rating/Good – Henge is Gus’ attempt to reinvigorate his love for making music and to make something based on feel with the hope to inspire. In that regard, Gus mostly succeeds as his attempt to evolve his sound that’s noticeable yet not a dramatic departure from the rest of his discography. Finding inspiration from a post-COVID world, Gus’ lyricism is relatable and abstract enough for listeners to be able to relate and empathize and inspire one to overcome the difficulties outlined in the album. With some fun creative choices, an homage to the 70s, and solid vocals, Henge doesn’t re-invent the wheel nor completely blow someone out of the water but is a safe, easy listen that is worth a listen for fans of the genre and artist.

[We rank singles, EPs, and albums on a scale of Poor, Mediocre, Good, Excellent, and Outstanding]