Just when I thought Role Model’s 2024 album “Kansas Anymore” could not get any more perfect, the singer finally gave into fan’s pleas with the Valentine’s Day release of the deluxe version of the album. “Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye)” features four new songs that encapsulate everything that draws me to his music.
The four new songs, “Old Recliners,” “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out,” “Some Protector” and “The Longest Goodbye,” feel like more confident and assured versions of the sounds he was playing around with on the original album. The new songs fit in effortlessly with the original album, proving the singer has truly uncovered where his sound thrives.
The 13 songs on “Kansas Anymore” showcase the difficulties that come with grasping the loss of a relationship, with songs like “Oh, Gemini” and “Frances” highlighting that feeling of not being able to accept that someone is no longer a part of your life.
These themes carry through to “Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye)” but Role Model presents a more healed version of himself, resigned to moving on from a love lost.
Something I love about Role Model’s music is how simple and catchy the choruses of his songs are and “Old Recliners” is no exception. This song plays with nostalgia and reminiscing on nights long gone, “I remember when the nights were long / Diving headfirst off the dock / Now I wonder where the days have gone / While I lay in bed and rot.” The crystal clear imagery of a summer’s day spent with someone who is no longer in his life paired with the simple repeated chorus of “Thinkin’ bout you, you in the moment.”
“Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” brings out a different side of Role Model’s music, more sonically fun and playful, but still sneaks in some heartbreaking lyricism if you listen close enough. Having teased this on his social media for several weeks before announcing the release of the deluxe album on Feb. 10, I was most excited for this song and I was not let down. The song perfectly captures Role Model’s persona, and is a refreshing, mostly lighthearted addition to the album’s vibe.
As a lover of the saddest music you can find, “Some Protector” is by far my favorite new addition. This song is Role Model’s admittance to himself that even though the relationship has ended and the other person has moved on, there will always be a part of him that holds on to it.
The bridge of this song, in particular, highlights the back and forth in his mind of that misplaced love and care he still holds for a previous partner: “Am I guilty? Am I sorry? / Do I miss you at the party? / Am I dragging this forever? / Am I thinking ‘bout September? / Am I wrecking reputation, / While you’re making reservations? / Am I lying to my mother / That someday I’ll find another?/ Yes, I am and I always will.”
The honesty in the lyrics where he admits he always be, in some way, a protector of that person is so beautifully heartbreaking, but also feels like acceptance from the singer. That feeling of finally reaching acceptance continues into the final track of the album and deluxe-version title track “The Longest Goodbye.” As the title suggests, the song serves as the closing of this chapter of his life as he finds peace in moving on although some of those feelings may remain: “I see the new man you’re holding, the bar is finally closing / I don’t know what I’m bugging you for / Between the silence and the mileage, the feelings you were hiding / I don’t think you love me anymore / And I don’t think I love you anymore / But I don’t think I’ll ever be so sure.”
“Kansas Anymore” was one of my top albums of 2024, and even though it is only February, I can pretty confidently say “Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye)” will be up there for my favorites of 2025. This album speaks to everything that draws me to Role Model, and I hope he continues to dig deeper into this sound that he has fallen into with his music.
5/5 stars
mkane10@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @rolemodel, Instagram
