Rick Christian shares his new single, “Pathways”
Following up Rick Christian’s last single “Emotionless” where haunting echos charged you into his emotionally hollow plain, comes a descent into darkness as you enter a dystopian future that is “Pathways.”
The song exists in a reality between now and the apocalypse, a world unfamiliar where everything is collapsing. Rick Christian’s stark and emotive commentary reacts to the emerging fear of this dystopian existence. The chorus proclaims feelings of losing yesterday, hanging onto the edge of a perceived reality as Christian moves towards the darkness. There is an underlying empathy towards the human race and its trauma. Between this fear and distress lies a personal journey of realization and improvement down many of life’s pathways in an uncertain future.
The “Pathways” experience is enhanced with its visual extension. The music video is presented in a dystopian, cyberpunk comic style with animations to take you on this dark journey. It is vivid, unsettling, and unfamiliar. This video is certain to make you feel the plight of this disturbing reality.
Review
Beginning with a fuzzy electro beat, “Pathways” follows the same dark sound as the previous single, “Emotionless,” except with an airy synth-heavy beat.
The vocals on “Pathways” are faint and somewhat muffled creating an eerie vibe. I could easily picture this song used in an apocalyptic movie soundtrack.
Throughout the song, I found myself drifting off into the sound Rick created, which is not an easy feat.
With lyrics “All these pathways to a darker place, All these pathways, dystopian grace,” Rick evokes a strong emotion, which has a hypnotizing effect, pulling you from your everyday existence into the future that takes place on the track.
All in all, this is a track that I feel will fit into various genres, and appeal to not only music fans, but also sci-fi enthusiasts.