“Sleepy” by George and The Handsomes

George & the Handsomes latest EP “Sleepy” takes a candid approach to crafting a unique piece of Alt Rock. Promoting nostalgic imagery while maintaining a balance of harmony, passing through each track on the EP evokes a feeling parallel to that of slipping between dreams.

While each track on the EP has the potential to stand alone, as a collection they complete a greater scene. Take for example the transition between “Not a Prophet” and “Sleepy Beats.” By simply sampling the click of a cassette tape, the George conceptualizes that intangible feeling of switching from one dream to another. Then, through embracing this concept, he continues to create a work partly representative of the strangeness of our own existence. Driven around the concept of making a piece that would really “mean something” the EP George spent the last year of his life working on looks to tell stories both for the benefit of others and for his own self.  

Bringing things back while moving past the transitions, “Sleepy Beats” is also the song that attracted me to George’s music in the first place. The sound of the chorus fills me with that ‘dim the living room lights lights, fall in love, giggle, and dance through the night’ kind of vibe. It’s terribly unexplainable, but yet here I am resonating with a dreamy feeling in my bones as I write you this piece. Additionally, approaching on the concept of change, the imagery of unsuspected events throughout “Sleepy Beats” works to remind listeners that they are not alone on this cluttered journey through life.   

Passing along to a later track, “Early Twenties” heavily centers around the concept of disassociation and serves as the glue of the EP. “And I’m not ready to write a song about my early 20s” George sings as the chorus hits and introduces listeners to a detachment of identity on account of the troubles with conceptualizing a changing self. I’m right with George on this one, growing up often times feels like a trap. A trap emphasized, in this case, through the focus on dreams and how we use dreams to slip into alternate realities. Spaces in which we can either hide from our fears or bring our greatest desires frontward. Spaces, like those created through George’s lyrics, where we’re dancing in the living room without a care in our heart or worry of tomorrow.    

As I continue to unravel the concept of a new decade, I see “Sleepy” by George & and the Handsomes as a perfect anthem to accompany my journey and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a break from traditional alternative rock.

Don’t just take my word for it though, give his music a try.

– Chris Goodall