Dominic Fike's '14 minutes' is refreshingly simple
The surprise album is perfect for a summer playlist
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Dominic Fike released an eight-song album, 14 minutes, in April. Rolling Stone called it a surprise release.
The album – coming in at 14 minutes and 22 seconds – is perfect coffeehouse music. It’s hard to top Sunburn, a five star out of five stars album, in my humble opinion, but 14 minutes isn’t meant to be a showstopper.
I like how it feels like an in-between album. It’s diary-like, quick scrawls here and there. The album is a concession in itself. It says, Hey, this is a 14-minute album. Take it or leave it. It’s in stark contrast to 30+ song releases. (Sorry).
I wish more artists would do this. Sometimes less is more. I’m curious to see if Sabrina Carpenter’s upcoming album, Short n’ Sweet, will lean into brevity as well.
I couldn’t make sense of Dominic’s song titles, which contributed to the feeling I was reading someone else’s journal. “1.23.23” was the most reminiscent of this. It was a beautiful interlude.
“I had forgotten what I was doing here,” he says in the two-minute song. “I had forgotten what I was doing with you.”
The best song on the album is “misses.” It’s flirty and chirpy, worthy of being put on repeat. It felt like a sunny morning complete with a good cup of coffee. “megaman” and “THICKRICK” felt similar, simple and train-of-consciousness.
Oh, I loved you, miss
And you will be grieved, I swear
But I won't be blamed
'Cause I loved you, miss-misses, Dominic Fike
“hi grace” was suave. It’s catchy and honest, if a bit autotuned. “If you don’t mind, I think you’re way better now than you were back then,” he sings. “Come be my baby, bail me out of here.”
At points, it feels like Dominic wants to hide his voice. Sound effects overshadow his vocals, and the whole album feels a bit muted. I liked it for what it was, though – a one-sided conversation.
Even his marketing for the album was simple, with only two Instagram posts on his feed referencing it as of writing this. In one caption, he wrote, “14 minutes of music that almost didn't see the light of day. that makes it feel even more right. from me to you! lightspeed!!”
In the spirit of simplicity, I’ll keep this short, too. 14 minutes is perfect summer music. Roll down your car windows and vibe. The best part? You can listen to the whole album on your drive home.
