Room Under The Stairs

About

“Say goodbye to the past/Leave it all with a laugh,” ZAYN reflects on his single “Alienated” from his fourth solo LP <i>ROOM UNDER THE STAIRS</i>. The British Pakistani singer is learning now how time heals wound. It was nearly a decade ago that he left One Direction and forged on alone, releasing three albums while bearing the public scrutiny of fame, high-profile relationship, breakup, and in recent years becoming a father. Decamping to a farm in rural Pennsylvania provided a sanctuary from the noise, where, through nurturing his daughter, as well as animals and a garden, he learned his own ways of self-care. <i>ROOM UNDER THE STAIRS</i> refers to the space where ZAYN recorded the album: an actual shoe cupboard in his home. From familiar surrounding, he steps into largely unexplored territory, submerging himself in the stripped-back, country-inspired sounds he’d touched upon at the tail end of his third album <i>Nobody Is Listening</i> in 2021. Assisted by renowned Nashville producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile), ZAYN’s voice and lyrical vulnerability here are as raw and resonant as the acoustic instrumentation, with a weary soulfulness fit for the questions—about life, love, growth, and parenthood—that emerge in the stillness of solitude. .

via Apple Music

The Clerk says

Start your shelf to read the full take →