Making a second album is a psychological nightmare, and Sylvan Esso were not immune to the existential spiral that comes with it. “We definitely got wrapped up in that thing that everyone gets wrapped up in,” says Nick Sanborn. The duo—Sanborn and Amelia Meath—were coming off the wild success of their debut, and with What Now, they found themselves facing the inevitable: proving they weren’t a fluke.
“It’s Not Over. It’s Never Over.”
While What Now is technically a sophomore record, Sylvan Esso don’t see it that way. “Nothing’s ever really over,” Meath explains. “We try to put these narratives on our lives in order to feel better about them, but that’s just not how life actually works.”
The record is less of a clean sequel and more of a product of everything that came before it. “There’s no way we could have made this record if we hadn’t made the first one and had the experience of touring,” says Sanborn. “It might not feel like a road record to everybody else, but it was shaped by what changed in our lives after that first album.”
Meath adds, “If we had more guitars and delay pedals, we might’ve made a proper road record. But I think we’ve been living like this for so long, it’s just… our normal.”
“Congrats, You’re in the Canon of Songs About How Radio Sucks”
The album’s biggest single, Radio, became inescapable for alternative stations—which is funny, considering it’s a song about the absurdity of commercial success. “Radio stations love playing songs about how the radio is broken,” Sanborn laughs. “We’re happy to be part of that tradition.”
But for Meath, Radio was less about the music industry and more about the internal battle that comes with ambition. “It’s a conversation I was having with myself about the pressure, the self-inflicted burn,” she says. “There are always two versions of yourself—one part sees the game and wants to play it, and the other part is horrified by that.”
If the song sounds like something out of a 1980s PSA, that’s because it kind of is. “We used my mom’s old Atari reel-to-reel to make the intro,” Meath reveals. “So yeah, you weren’t far off.”
“Slack-Jawed: The Ultimate Litmus Test”
For all the energy on What Now, the record has its quieter moments—none more exposed than Slack-Jawed, a song so sparse it’s almost acapella. “It’s the most naked we’ve ever been,” Meath admits. “And live, it can really go sideways.”
Sanborn laughs. “Recorded sound is easy. You can be as quiet as you want. Live, it depends on the crowd. Some nights, the audience is with us, ready to go anywhere. Other nights, it’s like we’re playing the high school football game halftime show.”
Meath puts it bluntly: “It’s the test. If we play Slack-Jawed and it works, the night’s going to be magical. If it doesn’t… well, time to course-correct.”
“Everything’s On Fire, So Let’s Fall in Love”
The album’s other standout, Die Young, sounds like a love song—until you pay attention. “It’s falling in love while everything is falling apart,” Meath says. “Because that’s what we do. That’s our programming. Everything is terrible, so we cling to each other.”
The key to a good pop song, according to Meath, is one perfect phrase. “That’s the white-hot center,” she says. “One clever turn of phrase you can say over and over again.” She spent weeks pushing her brain toward it, waiting for the moment it would appear.
Sanborn nods. “It’s like telling yourself to go to sleep. You can’t force it. But when it comes, you know.”
“Would This Album Have Been Different If We Knew What Was Coming?”
Though What Now isn’t overtly political, it carries an undercurrent of unease. “We wrote it in 2016, and then everything escalated,” Sanborn says. “Listening back, I hear us filled with anxiety. Even if it’s not about politics, it’s about how we were feeling in that moment.”
Meath adds, “Our job as musicians has changed. Now, more than ever, entertainment is a form of stability. People need a place to let go, to freak out, to reset.”
And if it all feels heightened—if the loud songs are louder and the quiet songs are quieter—that’s not an accident. “On our first album, the space and the noise were closer together,” says Sanborn. “On this one, the loud is deafening and the space is a canyon. That’s how that year felt.”
“So… What Now?”
The album’s title asks a question, but has Sylvan Esso found an answer?
Meath doesn’t hesitate. “Nope. And that’s the point. You’ll be asking yourself that question until you die.”
And with that, the duo laughs. Sanborn shrugs. “What now? Well… guess we just keep going.”
And a 2015 interview:
