Heaven knows why he’s not famous yet: A review of up-and-coming artist George Dillon’s new album ‘Heaven Knows Why’

With his last release a year and a half ago, Birmingham-based artist George Dillon is back with his new album Heaven Knows Why, released on October 2. I had the pleasure of giving it a listen ahead of its release. It’s a vibrant album with impressive production for a smaller artist. It has a warm, nostalgic vibe throughout, fitting the childhood photo album cover. Dillon explains that he “enjoy[s] music the most when it feels like someone is telling you something they’ve not said out loud before”, and he certainly achieves this with Heaven Knows Why. 

Heaven Knows Why adds more electronic production compared to his previous EP Coming Up For Air, but still feels loyal to its more folky foundations. The style of the album feels consistent, but undoubtedly elevated in its songwriting and particularly its production, which sounds much fuller. Dillon named Bon Iver’s 22, A Million as a big inspiration for this album, and you can certainly hear the similar use of layers and textures, which achieve an effective electronic-acoustic balance in the production. 

The opening track ‘Dog’ took the longest to write according to Dillon, and it certainly pays off. It’s an excellent opener with plenty of energy. You’re immediately enveloped in warm ‘indie’ guitar and electronic keys. ‘Fun’ is a word that kept coming to mind as I listened to this track. It’s an upbeat and refreshing take on the ‘let me be your dog’ lyrical trope, retaining its cheeky intimacy but developing it, giving the song more depth, 

The track sounds impressively mature, like something you’d expect from a far more seasoned artist

Another strong track is ‘Getting Old’. It stands out in the album thanks to its folky, almost Americana style. It’s a genre shift that adds a nice contrast, but still feels in keeping with the rest of the album. The track sounds impressively mature (perfect for the title), like something you’d expect from a far more seasoned artist. The one downside to this song would be that it felt a little short. That being said, it’s an amazing song, so perhaps that’s exactly why it left me wanting more. 

Another standout on the album is the penultimate song ‘Fly’. The piano is a much welcomed addition to the production, and the way its rhythm breaks up the 3/4 time creates the effect of the song having a more complicated time signature. The instrumental offers a nicely contrasting lift, with unique choppy, distorted samples in the background. The way the track cuts to silence at the end is very effective, building intensity before ending the song on an impactful cliff-hanger. 

The other tracks on the album are also great. ‘Mum + Dad’ has a notable Elliot Smith vibe to it, and makes excellent use of a lyrical technique which uses a repeated opening line for each section rather than a chorus. It has a happy sound with a darker undertone, giving the track a sad childhood nostalgia to it. ‘When I’m With You’ is subtly but greatly improved from ‘Beautiful’, its previous iteration on Coming Up For Air. The repetitive lyric has a mantra-like quality which reminded me of songs like Phoebe Bridgers’ ‘Never Going Back Again’. ‘Breakfast’ boasts beautiful harmonies and a cosy, bouncy synth reminiscent of a music box. 

The chorus is simple lyrically, but succeeds in expressing the idea of someone being so beautiful that it’s almost all you can say

‘Beautiful’, which is one of the singles off the album, has softer indie vibes which help add to the genuine and sweet sentiment of the song. The chorus is simple lyrically, but succeeds in expressing the idea of someone being so beautiful that it’s almost all you can say. That being said, the song is maybe a little repetitive. I felt I wanted it to give more, but I also recognise that that’s maybe not what it’s supposed to do (perhaps I was right about it representing that beautiful is ‘all you can say’?). 

The concluding song is also the title track: ‘Heaven Knows Why’. The album opened with a bang and concludes just as strongly – there is even a nice lyrical nod to the line “heaven feels so far away” in ‘Dog’, so the album comes full circle. The organ is a fitting instrumental addition to a song about heaven, and the slightly grungier, guitar-heavy production sounds great. The repeated “heaven knows why” lyric has a similar mantra quality to ‘When I’m With You’, and the repetition suits its role as the final track, as it gives it a sense of finality as if the song is fading off into the distance. 

Fading off into the distance is certainly not the future I see for George Dillon, however. For an album made using GarageBand in Dillon’s bedroom, it’s incredibly polished. The ‘DIY’ production, as Dillon calls it, is in fact one of the album’s strengths. In an age of digital production, some songs end up sounding too clean and mundane, unlike ‘Heaven Knows Why’, which is packed full of character. ‘Dog’ is the standout track – it opens the album incredibly well and was stuck in my head for days. Overall, this album is very impressive from a small artist, and a testament to the incredible grassroots music scene in Coventry, Birmingham, and the surrounding areas. Accompanying the album are five music videos recorded with the help of his brother. Dillon has produced a cracking album which you should all give a listen!

Recommended Listening: ‘Dog’, ‘Getting Old’

★★★★

Listen to Heaven Knows Why here: