Why Not - "No Suggestions Here" | New Music

(Cover art by Isaac Dell)

I think this might be what a Why Not ballad sounds like. It's all relative.

The Minneapolis trio are ringing in the new year with a new single, following up October's switch-up "Ding Dong." If one were to guess what the band's new year's resolution is based on "No Suggestions Here," it would likely "be more deliberate" or "slow down" or something like that. This is the most subdued they've sounded. As a result, it almost doesn't sound like Why Not (at least until the last 30 seconds). I'm all positive that's what they were going for.

With such a dramatic decrease in cacophonous guitars and overall scuzziness comes space. And that space needed to be filled with something. A continued partnership with Caleb of Normal Parents has filled those gaps with a coterie of weird sounds - skittering electro drums, a chime that sounds like it came straight from a N64 game, more synths that you would expect. As Henry Breen goes all out with pop star falsetto, Isaac and Josh remain in the background. "Ding Dong" brought more outright pop elements into the fold; "No Suggestions" continues that journey into the optimistic.

Everything is on track for a reinvented 2020 until the bottom suddenly drops out at the track's end. Why Not remind us that they haven't completely abandoned their past. They've just stuck it in a blender and threw the resulting smoothie at a cop car. "Nothing was the same," quoth Drake.

Stream "No Suggestions Here" below. Check out the band's January tour dates here. If you missed it, listen to our interview with Henry, Isaac, and Josh here.