June Gloom

“June Gloom” arrives at the album’s emotional center, and the timing feels deliberate. It follows “May Flowers” at the exact same tempo, but where that track leans tender, this one leans harder into something stormier, a mood shift that registers even before the first solo run lands. The waltz time is the key variable: in a collection that has mostly moved in straight rhythmic feel, the 3/4 pulse here creates a slight tilt underfoot, a sense of being pulled forward on a diagonal rather than a straight line.

The guitar work is the main event. High-gain harmonized leads trade off against a rhythm section that keeps everything grounded rather than chaotic, and the rapid arpeggios across the middle sections are precise without feeling cold. The production gives each layer room to breathe despite the density, which is harder to pull off at this tempo in waltz time than it sounds.

The placement earns its keep. Coming out of the album’s slower, more reflective stretch through April and May, “June Gloom” reintroduces urgency without breaking the mood entirely, and it hands off to “Sparkles in July” with enough forward momentum that the uplifting turn there feels earned rather than abrupt. It is doing sequencing work as much as it is doing showcase work, and it does both dependably. A listener coming to this track alone will hear a confident guitar feature; a listener coming through the album will feel it as the moment the year in music stops drifting and starts moving again.