Barely Know Sombr

By: Johnny Decker

Sombr, Islington Academy, London/ Drew de F Fawkes

Are you somber? You may hear the word come up but what about the artist? A 20-year-old up and coming artist born and raised in New York City. He attended LaGuardia High School and dropped out his junior year. In March 2025 he released his song "Back to Friends" which gained virality on TikTok. Sombr also gained more recognition with his single "Undressed." Success continued to come his with his music video featuring Addison Rae with the fourth single "12 to 12". He also has three nominations for the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards including Best New Artist and is set to perform there.

With new artists starting to become around my age or younger, I tend to find multiple similarities between ourselves due to life experiences and still figuring things out and making mistakes. I discovered Sombr two years ago with his song "could've been you" and had no idea he would have two big hit songs right now. I thought he was going to be an Indie artist which was not going to meet the mainstream due to high competition in the industry. His performance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon of "Back to Friends" got me hooked. He sounded almost identical to the studio version.

The first standout track is "12 to 12." The first bass drop entices the ears of the listener and raises their awareness. Ironically the chorus is "In a room full of people I look for you" and throughout the whole song is a four-minute mystique. A combination of genres such as disco, new wave, and synth pop complement the aura of the track. This is one of the more up-tempo songs of the album. The themes in " I Barely Know Her" are about breakup and hopeless romanticism, you can forget the lyrics on this track and dance.

With the lyrics of the songs such as "i wish i knew how i could quit you" and "we never dated" contain angst and wanting life's circumstances to change. Both express the desire for reciprocity and uncertainty to be reduced. Yearning for the other person to want you. Wishing the best but still upset without the individual liking you the same way. Or liking you the same way anymore.

Sombr is still early into his career so it will be interesting to his evolution as an artist. We barely knew him before his debut and will continue to learn more about him with more albums released in the future. This is a great body of work to listen to if you are going through the hardships of a breakup. Regardless of the age of the listener, many people have gone through these exact situations. With Sombr's youthful energy and presence there is excitement among fans for his new projects.

Track list:

1.) crushing

2.) 12 to 12

3.) i wish i knew how to quit you

4.) back to friends

5.) canal street

6.) dime

7.) undressed

8.) come closer

9.) we never dated

10.) under the mat