'Jonatan' Is Yung Lean Growing Up
Lean yearns for younger days on his existential, feature-less new project.
Like many of us, Yung Lean is a yearner. The ever-so elusive and enigmatic Swedish musician has just lifted the veil on his fourth studio LP – and his first since 2020’s Starz – and it’s and another lovely Leandoer soundscape, soaked in just the right amount of existentialism.
While Jonatan is a solo lyrical effort from Lean, the multihyphenate enlisted the likes of his close-knit creative circle of collaborators to contribute to the intricate sonic persona of the project. Drain Gang‘s Ecco2k oversaw the entirety of the album’s art direction with executive production coming from Grammy-winning producer Rami Dawod and additional production by Beck and Oneohtrix Point Never.
“Forever Yung” and “Babyface Maniacs” both mark high points of the genre-bending LP, with other notable cuts including the ABBA-interpolating “Might Not B” and closing cut “Lessons from Above.”
Per a press release, the 13-track, no-features album came together over the past few years in between three places: “the dark Swedish woods, the Californian desert, and New York City.”
1. Jonatan Intro
2. Might Not B
3. Forever Yung
4. Horses
5. Paranoid Paparazzi
6. Babyface Maniacs
7. I’m Your Dirt, I’m Your Love
8. Teenage Symphonies 4 God (God Will Only)
9. Changes
10. My Life
11. Swan Song
12. Terminator Symphony
13. Lessons from Above
Stream Jonatan, out on all streaming platforms now.
