Review: You Know I'm Not Going Anywhere - The Districts


By Eleni Haberis


 The Districts are a band of the classic alt rock archetype: small town sad boys. And while it would’ve been easy for them to fall into a prototypical “I hate this town” sound, they've built on their initial promise to produce a blend of indie rock and folk that’s fervent and exploratory. Sound exploration is particularly prevalent on their latest album, You Know I’m Not Going Anywhere, along with an increase in aura and ambiance.

Part of this album’s appeal is how inspired it feels, as if the band heard Arcade Fire for the first time and thought “oh THIS is how it's supposed to be done.” The album starts with the eerie-but-smooth “My Only Ghost,” a dreamy folk tale that introduces the listener to the themes of the record, implicitly rather than explicitly. Throughout the record are stories of secrets and memories and themes of detachment and death, but the Districts meander through them, not hurdling like an adolescent. It’s a gentler approach than their previous work, and one pairs well with the synthier music direction. 

You Know I’m Not Going Anywhere is a slow burn - you’ll feel like melting as you go through it. This is the first of their records to not feature an abrupt crash of sound, or a cathartic buildup, but it helps to reinforce the band’s newfound forbearance. The album’s peak is “Cheap Regrets,” the third song in a tracklist of 11. It maintains the energy of their prior work, setting up the rest of the album to be taken apart, patiently and methodically… a similar walk of reflection we all have to make growing up. 

The District’s 2015 album A Flourish and A Spoil (one of my favorites of all time) struck gold with youthful ambition, energy and indie rock goods. You Know I’m Not Going Anywhere doesn’t strike gold in the same place so much as it finds it elsewhere. While the musical restraint and milder passages may demonstrate a stereotypical “move to maturity,” the lyrical examinations and songwriting feels insightful, almost instinctual. The Districts may no longer be the same youths, but they’re still the same hearts and souls.

SCORE: 7.5/10


BOPS: "Cheap Regrets," "Changing," "Velour and Velcro"


DUDS: "Descend," "Dancer"


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