Review: Aaron Lee Tasjan- Stellar Evolution
Sometimes an eclectic album will be called “genre-defying.” Stellar Evolution, the new album from Aaron Lee Tasjan out 4/12 on Blue Elan Records, isn't genre-defying. That implies an acknowledgment that genres exist, something Tasjan refuses to do throughout this record.
Stellar Evolution pinballs from synthwave to power pop, classic rock, glam to Americana, and elsewhere, sometimes within the same song. Co-produced by Tasjan and Gregory Lattimer, who teamed up to produce Tasjan's 2021 album Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan!, it somehow always makes sense within the context of the song and the album.
The album's standout track “Alien Space Queen” is about as far from standard roots music as it gets. It's a danceable celebration of the outsider, with Tasjan noting the song's subject “ drives an old Trans-Am / in sunset gold / she's trans-femme / a demigirl dream.” Tasjan imagines a day when these joyous weirdos will rule the world and “we would live in peace.”
Another highlight of the album is “The Horror of It All.” With a less celebratory take on non-conformity, Tasjan sets this song in one of the least friendly places for the different; high school. “Whispers in the hallway growing” Tasjan laments as his rumored sexual proclivities are bandied about the classroom. But his protagonist comes out of it, screaming “I've got to be myself / because everyone else / is already taken.” This is the strongest guitar track on Stellar Evolution, reminding listeners why Tasjan was tapped as guitarist for New York Dolls before his solo career. When he rips, he truly rips. Further distancing it from being too serious is the fun music video, with its '80s horror movie VHS look and feel.
Stellar Evolution's other single, “Drugs Took Me” starts as a stoner fable (“dirty feet / long greasy hair / Jesus Christ goes heroin chic”) with Tasjan reciting the lines in his best burnout voice turns darker in the song's second half as he sees himself in the mirror (“white as an Irish spirit/everyone's best invisible friend”). It's somewhat autobiographical, telling Tasjan's journey to sobriety.
Tasjan goes full Tom Petty mode on “I Love America Better Than You.” It's a shot at nationalists who see patriotism as a contest, and exclusive to people who look or think like they do. “Happy Independence,” Tasjan drawls. “I hope you weren't depending / on we're all created equal / to go and live some dream.”
For those looking for ballads, Stellar Evolution has its share. “Dylan Shades” is an introvert's love story. “Roll Your Windows Down” is just about the pure joy of hanging out with people who accept who you are. “Young” is a piano ballad that is beautiful in its simplicity.
Stellar Evolution feels like just that for Aaron Lee Tasjan; an evolution. The courage to let the songs dictate the genre or, as is often the case here, to skip genrefication altogether, comes with experience. Stellar Evolution is the portrait of an artist who comes into his own.