Profligate – Too Numb To Know

“‘Too Numb to Know’ showcases Profligate continuing to shirk the heavy electronics of his early years for razor sharp pop. On 2018’s ‘Somewhere Else,’ Noah Anthony delivered dark pop gems while adding live instrumentations, reinvigorating his songwriting and sonic palette. This new song-driven approach gained praise from Resident Advisor, Pitchfork, Bandcamp Daily and The Wire, exposing Profligate to new listeners.

Too Numb to Know followed Anthony from coast to coast, as he recorded his first demos in Philadelphia and then moved to Los Angeles, a city he found creatively challenging and emotionally depleting. After the theft of his computer—and with it the work he’d done on ‘TNTK’ in L.A.—Anthony took a friend’s suggestion and moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he finished the album and added contributions from allies like Matchess, Lazy Magnet, Gel Set, and Missions, among others.

TNTK is about growth, reflection and change. Lead single “Hang Up” urges the artist’s younger self to trust his instincts during chaos. Its message pairs with bright keyboards, a pulsing beat, and soft, alluring vocals – on the chorus, he croons “Nothing you create but love penetrates.” It’s an urgent, driving pop song that fuses electronics with guitar and bass like the best of alternative radio. Guitar is prevalent on ‘TNTK,’ building on the live bass of ‘Somewhere Else,’ adding a new arrow to Anthony’s quiver, creating more space for melody, and using it to fill the room.

“A Little Rain” and “My Days” feature evocative melodic and textural beauty. Laura Callier of Gel Set adds graceful shimmering vocals to “A Little Rain” that wash the song in nostalgia, while the latter song’s weave of mostly acoustic instruments (certainly a first for Profligate) is unexpected and welcome. Softer moments like these are interspersed throughout ‘TNTK’ between kinetic numbers like “No Clear Way,” while “We Can Punish” and “A Stranger” are reminiscent of his noisier, beat-oriented years. This varied approach and attention to detail are the garnish to an already tight song cycle that will satisfy hardcore fans of Noah Anthony’s output and newcomers, alike”