Holy Nowhere – ‘Soft Return’ [Album Review]

Originally from New Jersey and now based in Seattle, singer-songwriter Steve Sachs, aka Holy Nowhere, has released his new album, Soft Return, which proffers the question: Can we still find wonder in a world without magic?

Prior to moving to the Pacific Northwest, Sachs played with his band, YJY. After releasing a few EPs, an album, and performing all over The Garden State, the band called it quits, and Sachs moved west, where he found himself writing less and less. An out-of-the-blue panic attack provided an epiphanic moment that, surprisingly, opened the creative floodgates.

A friend connected him to artist/producer Dana Why, and the two began a long-distance collaboration. Sachs sent Why rough ideas, and then, as he describes it, “Dana would then send me a beautiful, incredible instrumental version of my song—this usually felt like hearing it for the first time and was a very exciting part of the process.”

The result is his deeply personal, new solo project, Holy Nowhere, and the new eight-song album, Soft Return, which begins with “Save You,” a soft rock tune that conjures up memories of Fleetwood Mac, offering a shimmering tapestry of low-slung colors atop a syncopated beat.

Entry points include “Infinite Mirror,” with its slightly dissonant flavors that work so well when blended, and Sachs’ velvety, dreamy vocals. Revolving around a thumping kick-drum, “Press Pause” throbs with simmering, contagious energy as wistful, platinum guitars deliver the warm topline.

A personal favorite because of its percolating pop savors and elusive hints of pop-punk, “Just A Memory” closes the album out with a bouncy melody that belies the nostalgic sorrow of the lyrics – gazing back at the demise of a one-sided relationship.

Winsome and full of longing, Soft Return ends before expected, a charming collection of songs that vanish, leaving you wanting more.

Holy Nowhere, photo courtesy of Holy Nowhere

Soft Return Track Listing:

1. Save You
2. Infinite Mirror
3. Press Pause
4. Ghostly in the Walls
5. You’re Moving On
6. Unreasonable Me
7. Wailing Loon
8. Just A Memory

Run Time: 28:15
Release Date: December 8, 2023
Record Label: Mint 400 Records