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Go Farther in Lightness is the second studio album by Australian alternative rock band Gang of Youths. It was released on 18 August 2017 by Mosy Recordings. It debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart[3] and was supported by nationwide tours.[4]

Go Farther in Lightness
Studio album by Gang of Youths
Released	18 August 2017
Recorded	November–December 2016[1]
Studio	Sony Music Studios, Sydney
Genre	Alternative rock[2] indie rock[2]
Length	74:49
Label	Mosy Sony
Producer	Adrian Breakspear Gang of Youths
Gang of Youths chronology
Let Me Be Clear (2016) Go Farther in Lightness (2017) MTV Unplugged (Live in Melbourne) (2018)
Singles from Go Farther in Lightness
"What Can I Do If the Fire Goes Out?" Released: 10 February 2017 "Atlas Drowned" Released: 12 May 2017 "Let Me Down Easy" Released: 26 May 2017 "The Deepest Sighs, the Frankest Shadows" Released: 9 August 2017

Lyrically, the album explores philosophy, the themes of loss and existentialism,[5] and more broadly, "the human experience in all its bleakness and triumph".[6] At 74 minutes, Go Farther in Lightness is sonically described as "articulate, meticulous, intense rock", and features three string interludes composed by frontman Dave Le'aupepe.[7]

Preceded by four singles – most notably "What Can I Do If the Fire Goes Out?" and "Let Me Down Easy", the latter became the band's first top 50 single in Australia and placed at number two on the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2017.[8]

The album was nominated in eight categories at the ARIA Music Awards of 2017, winning four – Album of the Year, Best Group, Best Rock Album and Producer of the Year for Gang of Youths and Adrian Breakspear. At the J Awards of 2017, Go Farther in Lightness was nominated for Australian Album of the Year.[9] The album was certified Platinum in Australia in 2020, having sold over 70 thousand copies.[10]

Background and recording

In an interview with Richard Kingsmill on Triple J, frontman Dave Le'aupepe described the songwriting process for the upcoming album, saying he "went through a huge year-long writer’s block".[11] He added that he wrote the majority of the tracks during constant touring in the year prior amidst the release of their debut extended play, Let Me Be Clear.[12]

On 6 February 2017, Le'aupepe announced that the album was almost completely finished, set to release in August. Further, he revealed the band would be relocating to London amidst visa compilations for band member Jung Kim.[13]

Release

On 10 February 2017, lead single "What Can I Do If the Fire Goes Out?" was released, described by publication Stereogum as a "relentlessly driving anthem" and by Le'aupepe as "about me persisting in my savage spirit of enquiry, trying to figure out and examine my life".[14]

Second single "Atlas Drowned" was released on 12 May alongside the announcement of a nationwide Australian tour.[15] The song was explained by Le'aupepe as harshly critiquing Ayn Rand's 1957 novel Atlas Shrugged.[16]

"Let Me Down Easy" was released as the third single on 26 May. It became the band's first top 50 single on the ARIA charts, peaking at number 49.[17]

The album's fourth and final single, "The Deepest Sighs, The Frankest Shadows" was released just a week before the full release, on 9 August 2017.[18] It was released alongside a music video. The song received praise from reviewers, with Al Newstead of Triple J writing that it encapsulates "the emotional strengths of Gang of Youths’ best work".[19]

Promoting the album, Gang of Youths went on an Australian tour from August 2017,[20] and again from May 2018 for the Say Yes to Life Australian and North America tour,[21] which saw the band break the Enmore Theatre's venue record for most sold-out shows in a single tour.[22]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Rolling Stone Australia	[23]
The Music AU	[24]

Jaymz Clements of Rolling Stone gave the album five stars, saying it "poetically explores the human experience in all its bleakness and triumph, confusion and clarity, heartbreak and joyousness", and called it "a remarkable odyssey of an album that'll engulf you".[25] Rachel Scarsbrook of Renowned for Sound made similar comments, stating the album "doesn’t fall into the trap of becoming too dark and pitiful, instead there is positivity radiating out of its every fibre".[26]

Jessica Dale of The Music AU called the album "something special" and stated "Listen to [it] in its entirety; it is phenomenal and deserves nothing less than that."[27] Stack Magazine said "Each song builds expertly, and tempos sway like tides. Parts will make you throw a defiant fist in the air and in other moments, sombre reflection is only appropriate. [David] Le'aupepe's emotional vocal is each track's initial attraction, but what really shines is the intricate instrumental detail."[28]

Triple J called the album "a stirring collection of music that places Gang of Youths another rank higher in the echelons of Aussie rock bands".[29]

Legacy

Three of the album's tracks featured in the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2017, all in the top ten – peaking at number two with "Let Me Down Easy", followed by "The Deepest Sighs, the Frankest Shadows" at number five and "What Can I Do if the Fire Goes Out?" at number ten. The only other artists to have achieved this feat previously are Powderfinger in 2003 and Chet Faker in 2014.[30] Further, three more tracks featured in the Hottest 200 the following day – "The Heart is a Muscle" at 126, and "Say Yes to Life" and "Fear and Trembling" at 175 and 176 respectively.

Go Farther in Lightness has not left the ARIA Australian Albums Chart since its debut in 2017, and has featured in numerous end-of-year top album lists.[31]

Rolling Stone Australia placed the album at number three in its 50 Best Albums of 2017 list.[32] It also featured on the Sydney Morning Herald's Top 20 Albums of 2017 list[33] and placed eighth in music commentary website Sputnikmusic's Top 50 Albums of 2017.[34]

In 2020, two of the album's tracks featured in the Triple J Hottest 100 of the Decade – "Let Me Down Easy" at number 19 and "The Deepest Sighs, the Frankest Shadows" at number 52.[35]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by David Le'aupepe.[36]

1. "Fear and Trembling" – 6:03
2. "What Can I Do if the Fire Goes Out?" – 4:56
3. "Atlas Drowned" – 4:31
4. "Keep Me In the Open" – 5:57
5. "L'imaginaire" – 1:30
6. "Do Not Let Your Spirit Wane" – 7:33
7. "Go Farther in Lightness" – 1:48
8. "Achilles Come Down" – 7:02
9. "Persevere" – 4:33
10. "Le symbolique" – 3:51
11. "Let Me Down Easy" – 5:19
12. "The Heart Is a Muscle" – 5:24
13. "Le réel" – 2:22
14. "The Deepest Sighs, the Frankest Shadows" – 5:52
15. "Our Time Is Short" – 5:17
16. "Say Yes to Life" – 5:13

Notes

• Physical versions of this album only list 12 tracks and label the four interludes "L'imaginaire", "Go Farther in Lightness", "Le symbolique" and "Le réel" in roman numerals.

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes.

Gang of Youths

• David Le'aupepe – writing, lead vocals, engineering, string arrangements, horn arrangements, piano, guitar
• Joji Malani – horn arrangements, lead guitar
• Max Dunn – bass
• Jung Kim – guitar, keyboards
• Donnie Berzestowski – drums

Additional musicians

Technical

• Peter Katis – mixing (1–4, 6, 9, 11–12, 14, 16)
• Adrian Breakspear – producer, mixing (5, 7–8, 10, 13, 15), engineering
• Peter Holz – engineering
• Lewis Mitchell – engineering
• Josh Pearson – assistant
• Joe Lambert – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2017)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[37]	1

Year-end charts

Australian Albums (ARIA)
Year	Position
2017[38]	44
2018[39]	39
2019[40]	29
2020[41]	39
2021[31]	24

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[42]	Platinum	70,000
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release history for Go Farther in Lightness

Region	Date	Format	Label	Catalogue	Ref.
Australia	18 August 2017	CD digital download streaming	Mosy Recordings / Sony Music Australia	88985442992	[43][44]
	7 September 2017	LP	Sony Music Australia	88985443011	[45]

See also

• List of number-one albums of 2017 (Australia)

References

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