After announcing his retirement in 2016, Youth Lagoon, AKA Trevor Powers, released two studio albums under his real name. In 2022, Powers resurrected the Youth Lagoon moniker and in 2023 delivered the critically acclaimed Heaven Is a Junkyard. Rarely Do I Dream, Youth Lagoon’s second full-length since the project’s revival, has been met with similar positive notices and it’s easy to see why.
Although Trevor doesn’t stray far from the approach he took on Youth Lagoon’s 2023 LP, Rarely Do I Dream distinguishes itself from Heaven Is a Junkyard by replacing the more experimental, scratchy bits with audio from, apparently, the Powers family VHS home movie archive. “Well this is a good shot. We got Trevor smiling at mommy in the picture,” a woman’s voice is heard saying in the first minute of the lead off track, “Neighborhood Scene”. With its twinkling piano and ever-present gentle synths over a mid-tempo beat, the song makes for a thoughtful and sweet starting point. As its name suggests, “Speed Freak” has Trevor stepping on the accelerator. Over a beat built for the dancefloor and a fuzzed-out hook, Powers sings, “Stray dog, why did you come for me?”
The home movie audio returns during the oddly upbeat, vampire-themed “Gumshoe (Dracula from Arkansas)”. The song’s uncharacteristically peppy tone paired with lyrics about a detective who’s hunting a bloodsucking murderer make for odd bedfellows, but it’s a decent moment. “Seersucker” takes a turn back toward the personal as Trevor sings, “Had no money half the time, Ma couldn’t pay, Pop OD’d in ’99, I miss him every day.” Here, the dramatic piano grants Powers’ intimate stories a more fitting sonic backdrop.
Rarely Do I Dream’s second half opens with “Perfect World”. Percolating synths underscore an idiosyncratic chord progression that crashes headlong into pounding guitars during the song’s chorus, making this the album’s most experimental track. “My Beautiful Girl” is the record’s only drum-free song, and it puts Powers’ distinct vocals front and center. “Your mama screamed when you thought she couldn’t scream more, your daddy’s deaf, so he never heard the screen door,” Powers sings over plaintive piano chords. With its sincere execution musically, lyrically, and vocally, the side B standout is Rarely Do I Dream’s finest moment.
“Canary” isn’t anything special, but it does distinguish itself with a jazzy trumpet solo. Rarely Do I Dream’s penultimate track is the slinky, sneaky “Saturday Cowboy”. It’s the last song that will feature Trevor’s singing before the album is closed out with “Home Movies (1989-1993)”, a three-and-a-half-minute montage of Powers family VHS audio edited together and played alongside thoughtful piano and Youth Lagoon’s trademark synths. The family audio interspersed throughout Rarely Do I Dream helps to make Powers’ lyrics feel that much more sincere. Although the emotional tone instrumentally from song to song doesn’t always match the anecdote being relayed, there’s still more than enough solid moments here to make Rarely Do I Dream an enjoyable listen.
Rating: 7.6/10
