ALBUM REVIEW: For Lilly Hiatt, “Forever” Means Letting Go of Expectations
Maeri Ferguson
Posted On January 28, 2025
What happens when you get everything you dreamed of, when you find love and a comfortable place to land? For Lilly Hiatt, a lot of loud guitars, fuzz and distortion of the garage rock variety. The sound of Forever, Hiatt’s sixth studio album, unexpectedly suits this current moment she’s in, and one she’s been inching toward for years, especially at her live shows wherein she unabashedly shreds and thrashes.
As it turns out, contentedness doesn’t quiet the noise of life. Settling down and building a home with someone doesn’t quell the anxiety and fear inherent to being a person. In fact, new uncertainties loom, replacing the old ones in a clean, even exchange—one set of issues for another.
Forever is proof that great art doesn’t exclusively come out of periods of misery and heartbreak, but neither out of that quiet moment when all the cheering from the sidelines fades away and all that’s left are the familiar routines and surroundings. As lovely as it all may seem, wherever you go, there you are.
Hiatt nails this conundrum with songs like “Ghost Ship” and the album’s title track, effortlessly cool with her airy vocals. As Hiatt’s usually fruitless search for meaning in all life’s mundanities—a haircut, a restaurant—sends her into a tailspin, it’s the less tangible, more abstract things that bring her back down to earth, grounding her in something real. The love she feels for her partner (“Man,” “Somewhere”), the life stretched out ahead of her waiting to be lived (“Thoughts”), even an imagined extra day nestled somewhere between Thursday and Friday (“Hidden Day”).
Amid the sweet earworm grooves that fill Forever, produced by Hiatt’s partner Coley Hinson, she gradually lets go of the expectations plaguing her in this new phase of life, opting to let it all (the new habits, pace, sensations) fall into place. What this exercise yields is a version of Hiatt seemingly at her most relaxed and confident. Better than any fleeting fantasy, forever looks good on her.
Lilly Hiatt’s Forever is out Jan. 31 via New West Records.
