by Katie Hanford
When Two Inch Astronaut announced their indefinite hiatus in the summer of 2018, fans of good music everywhere heaved a collective sigh. Active for nearly 10 years, Two Inch Astronaut’s swerving, stuttering, utterly delectable sound spent the decade worming its way into our hearts and souls. Their “see you later” Facebook post was not only sweet and endearing but also provided a kernel of hope for spin-offs and solo projects.
Here we are a year and a half later, following former front-man Sam Goblin to his next endeavor, folk-pop-punk project Mister Goblin. Is Path Warm?, the full-length debut album for this project, swings between a variety of sounds with feel-good riffs and bright guitars consistent throughout. Goblin has stayed true to his mathy tendencies, but with Mister Goblin they come second fiddle to a special brand of tenderness and nostalgia. “Calendar Dogs” is a perfect example of the balance Goblin has struck: heavy enough to keep your head bobbing incessantly while also incorporating sickly-sweet vocal harmonies (the product of a collaboration with the wonderful Sadie Dupuis) that have you screaming along to the chorus like a 13 year-old at a Fall Out Boy show.
Is Path Warm? is both an easy and interesting listen, an album of catchy earworms and Elliott Smith-esque intricacies. Acoustic ballads (“Between You and Me,” “The Forgettery”) seamlessly wedge themselves between punky bangers with a softer edge (“No Crime Here,” “SFYL”). Regardless of the tonal feel of a track, the lyrical depth of each song provides food for thought beyond the intrigue of the music itself. Topics stretch from suicide and violence to love and existential crisis, examining what mental health can look like within a society that doesn’t know how to handle it. When you can draw a comparison between the disappointing plotline of Halloween III and the disappointing way your friends gloss over your problems, you know you’ve got a solid record on your hands.
The best part about this album is its genre-bending. It easily satisfies nearly every part of a music taste. It’s soft and beautiful, it’s poppy and cheesy, it’s hardcore and deep… nothing is left out, and no one is left wanting. I’ve spent a week with Mister Goblin, but I can already tell I’ll be coming back to him for a long, long time.