Rob Leon - Belong

Rob Leon

Belong
self-released; 2023

By Matt Jensen

Rob Leon was fifteen years old when he first picked up a guitar. He grew up influenced by bands like The Cure, Neil Young, David Bowie, Lou Reed, The Clash and Talking Heads. Leon recently released Belong which is his debut album. It has ten songs and Leon mentions the album contains “Vibe-y alt rock with heavy influences from Lou Reed, David Bowie, Pete Townshend and Neil Young.”

The album starts with “Always Be In The Light” which is an atmospheric song with distant lead guitars, a strummed acoustic guitar and a formidable rhythm section. I loved the pacing on this song. The energy changes throughout. Leon sounds good on vocals and there’s also some well done female accompaniment. Great opener.

“January Stardust” is a tip of the hat to David Bowie. There are a number of references to the legend. In fact, there’s definitely some ’70s Bowie aesthetic in the song. It’s a pretty epic song and it soars. “Sara's Gun” has more of a pensive feeling to it. At first I was reminded of Pink Floyd but then it changed into more of a rock song. It’s dynamic and I thought the synth was well implemented creating this sense of dissonance. On “Deep End” we get some bongos and a more cerebral reflection about a past relationship. It’s warm, inviting and I thought how the song changes into something more motivational at points was quite brilliant.

“Autumn” was one of my favorites. It’s very dreamy with cascading melodies and a very cosmic type of feel. This song could be the closer given the scope of the song and how it feels like a farewell into the next life. The title song “Belong” is vibrant and one of the more joyful songs on the album. It avoids sounding cheesy which could have happened in the wrong treatment. 

Leon continues to impress with “This Time” and “October Light” both of which display different shades of emotion. “Fragile Friend” is tender and quite beautiful. It might make you shed a tear. Last up is “Slow The Day” which is another epic song and mixes many emotions. Great drumming on this one.

​I thought this was a great album. Leon is a fantastic songwriter and this album is cohesive yet versatile. I recommend listening from beginning to end.

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