Joseph
From the venue:
For nearly a decade, Oregon-bred indie-pop trio Joseph have performed a certain emotional alchemy with
their music, channeling their deepest inner tensions into songs that spark a life-changing shift in
perspective. In the making of their third studio album The Sun, Natalie Closner and her sisters, twins
Meegan Closner and Allison Closner focused their soul-searching songwriting on the quietly damaging
forces that keep us from living fully in our truth (e.g., gaslighting, cultural conditioning, unconscious yet
painfully limiting self-beliefs). Rooted in a newly emboldened sound that lets their breathtaking three-part
harmonies shine more brightly than ever, the result is a body of work that radically expands our sense of
possibility, ultimately illuminating a path toward greater peace and self-reliance even in the most chaotic
of times.
The follow-up to Good Luck, Kid-a 2019 release that reached #4 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums
chart-The Sun builds from its predecessor’s cinematic pop and imbues a thrilling new energy into each
elegantly sculpted track. In bringing the album to life, Joseph worked with acclaimed producers like
Tucker Martine (My Morning Jacket, First Aid Kit, Laura Veirs), Christian “Leggy” Langdon (Meg
Myers, Amos Lee, BANKS), Jessica Dobson (Deep Sea Diver), and Joey Burns (Calexico), alongside
songwriting collaborators including, Tayla Parx and Wynne Bennett, known for their work with artists
such as Janelle Monae, Twin Shadow, Haim, Khalid, Normani and Ariana Grande. Collectively shaping
an irresistibly vibrant sound encompassing everything from the moody grandeur of the album-opening
“Waves Crash” to the pure anthemic glory of tracks like “Kicking Up The Light.” With the band taking a
decidedly more hands-on role in the production process, The Sun continually achieves the exquisite feat
of spinning incredibly complex concepts into sing-along-ready pop songs, providing a captivating
backdrop for Joseph’s fearlessly personal storytelling.
One of the first songs recorded for The Sun, the album’s shimmering title track served as something of a
sonic breakthrough for Joseph. “We’d already played that song live so many times and sung it in a
particular way that was more dramatic and had a kind of gravitas to it, but Leggy took it in a more
buoyant and summery direction,” Natalie explains. Inspired by Meegan’s experience in working through
the lessons of a past relationship, “The Sun” now centers on a lush arrangement of galvanizing rhythms,
radiant piano tones, and gorgeously euphoric harmonies-all of which lend a profoundly triumphant spirit
to the song’s statement of self-celebration (“I thought I was the light switch you turned on/But I was the
Sun”). As Natalie acknowledges, that shift toward a more joyful and resplendent presentation perfectly
mirrors The Sun’s underlying narrative. “The whole album is a sort of thinking through of the story that
you tell about yourself, to yourself,” she says. “It’s about looking at whatever is diminishing you or
making you believe in these limitations you’ve put on yourself, and then finally asking, ‘What if I’m more
than that?’”
“All of our therapists were a huge influence on this album,” Meegan noted. The Sun endlessly reveals
Joseph’s commitment to the clear-eyed self-reflection that’s guided the band since their earliest days.