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Gus Dapperton has always been obsessed with building new worlds. Its been part of his passion since he started making songs in Garageband, a creators mindset that eventually shaped two independent albums of defiantly original alt-pop. Now signed to Warner Records, Dapperton goes even further on his new project, Henge, immersing himself in bold details and immersive songwriting to conjure a twilight world that permanently hovers between sunset and sunrise throughout 11 mercurial songs.Manhattanhenge happens in New York when the sun lines up perfectly between the buildings and it looks like a solstice, the artist-producer says of his cryptic album title. I came up with the concept about someone entering this underworld as the sun goes down and trying to get home before dawn -- or risk being stuck in a time loop. The push and pull between nighttime revelry and sun-dappled safety resonates with Dapperton in post-pandemic America.A lot of my life after COVID is just trying to embrace the world again, the 26-year-old says. I was always an introvert, but now I get an adrenaline rush from being around people. While there is a distinct thematic throughline, Dapperton wants listeners to go on their own journeys. I write songs that can be taken out of context and enjoyed individually, but theres a story you could follow if you wanted to.Dappertons love of sonic world-building has deep roots. The Warwick, New York native didnt grow up in a traditionally musical family, but there was always something blasting from the radio. As much as he loved music, he didnt think he would ever make his own: I tried picking up the guitar, he remembers. It didnt really stick. An eighth-grade music class changed all that. Students were tasked with making a song in GarageBand -- and Dapperton had found his instrument.Dapperton spent the rest of high school making beats. By the time college came around, his confidence had blossomed. I started picking up instruments and singing, he says. While attending Drexel University, he played gigs in Philadelphia and ventured to New York City with just his computer, an MPD pad, and a guitar. He soon dropped out and released a series of independent EPs as well as the acclaimed albums Where Polly People Go to Read and Orca. With buzz brewing, a feel-good feature would be his breakthrough.Supalonely, a collaboration with New Zealand singer-songwriter BENEE, went viral during lockdown in 2020 and amassed more than one billion streams on its way to becoming a double-Platinum hit. It gave me and other indie artists credibility, he says. It showed that alt-pop songs can be massive. Dapperton signed to Warner Records in 2022 and immediately got started on Henge.
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