Editor’s Note: Some links have been updated for functionality.
Through TikTok and other social media platforms, David Kushner has risen to internet stardom thanks to his rich voice and moving lyrics. “Daylight,” the hit song that landed him in the spotlight with 1.2 billion listens, is also featured in his debut album, “The Dichotomy.” The 17-track was released on Aug. 30, 2024, and runs for a total of 55 minutes.
“[This] musical work examines the interplay between light and darkness, happiness and sadness, anger and love, hero and villains, and the dichotomy of our inner demons and angels,” says the official website for Kushner.
The opening song, “No High,” introduces listeners to Kushner’s deep voice, which is contrasted in other sections of the album with his amazing ability to switch from low to high notes in a heartbeat. The song starts with a guitar solo, which gradually fades away to Kushner singing. The only disappointment in this song was the attempt made by Kushner to use vibrato on very low notes, which made it sound forced and unnatural.
“Love is Going to Kill Us” starts with instrumentation, sounding like a group of stringed instruments, before delving into Kushner’s lyrics. The repeated chorus line of “This love is going to kill us, is that okay,” is immersed with “heys!” sprinkled throughout the song. His reference to common religious beliefs in the lyrics: “We’re not demons, angels fall,” showcase just how interwoven Kushner’s faith and songwriting can be.
The song “Flesh x Blood” describes someone whose body is warring against his faith. Kushner repeatedly asks God to cleanse him from his “flesh and blood.” In order to show this in a more dramatic aspect, Kushner incorporates dissonance with stringed instruments right before he sings “Death to your voice, my faith is wavin,” creating this sense that his faith is pushing against him.
Throughout this album, Kushner repeatedly makes allusions back to Christian scripture: “You ate from the vine” (Buried at Sea), “Fell from Eden, that’s my fault” (Love is Going to Kill Us). These references provide more insight into his beliefs and conviction.
The best song of the playlist is one most people might not expect to love, since it doesn’t last that long. “Buried at Sea” contrasts with the rest of the album by being sung slower at first, in a softer tone. The musicality of the song makes it sound like xactly what the title depicts. There’s a sort of music explosion at around 3 minutes, which is absolutely necessary to build the song. The stringed instruments that had been playing sweetly in the background suddenly play at their loudest, along with the background singers producing an impactful sound.
“Universe” has a beautiful symbolism of the beauty of a rose with the lyrics inside the chorus, “We’re the rose that never fell apart, baby we could last a lifetime.” Comparing his love life to a rose highlights the creativity of Kushner. He used this comparison to convey how sacred and special his love is to him, and how long it could last, since roses fall apart very quickly.
Overall, David Kushner’s debut album was an absolute masterpiece. Incorporating the Christian faith into pop culture is a tough thing to do, but he flawlessly embraced the concept of faith. This was his first full album, but it shouldn’t be his last.
Ame • Sep 19, 2024 at 2:07 pm
Enjoyed reading this article. However, “were the rose that never fell apart” is a lyric from Universe, not Heaven Sees, which is made obvious by the following lyric “we could last a lifetime in another universe”.