Jack Horton and Vesper Stockwell present something strikingly genuine in "Never Know Why", the fourth song on Horton's new EP, "Imperfections." It's a meticulously engineered emotional odyssey that blooms from the most austere vulnerability into a spacious blanket of orchestral warmth.
"Never Know Why" is a love duet about the loopy mysteriousness of connection and how often it sidesteps reason or explanation or even the convenience of simultaneity. Horton's signature gravelly vocal tone opens the track, raw and almost reticent, like fumbling around in the dark for something misplaced. Vesper Stockwell, who not only mirrors Horton with a crystalline voice but also elevates the song to a new emotional cadence. Their harmonies feel earned. This is a conversation, a tug of war between two voices attempting to rationalize what cannot be justified.
There is a personal ring in Horton's own tale. After a decade of closely managed reinvention as an Oregon native, Tokyo law student, attorney, government official, and tech founder, it's clear that this return to music is a homecoming. His facility for musical storytelling is subtle but undeniable, and this is a classically trained pianist. You can hear restraint, purpose, and an undeniable lived-in-ness in every note.
The ordering is beautifully reflective of the emotional arc. What starts as a sparse piano-and-voice tune eventually blossoms into a full-bodied, string-dotted symphonic flourish. Strings swell, layers build, and the apparent musical honesty of the first few minutes becomes something huge, yet somehow never overblown. The production honors the openness of the lyrics, allowing the emotion to come to the surface.
"Never Know Why" plays like a conversation between two people who can't account for why they need each other, or why they have to split. It's a sentiment so familiar, delivered with sincerity and grace. The imperfections Horton alludes to in his EP title are the fingerprints of real life, since life is pressed into every melody and lyric. In his latest, Horton is living proof that it's never too late to answer the melody beating within. And with Stockwell by his side, that melody has never rung truer.
Reviewed by LyricalOdyssey Music
on
July 14, 2025
Rating:
No comments: