Album Review: Almost Forever by Caroline Chiesa
Album Review: Almost Forever by Caroline Chiesa
Written By: Dan Eachus
Release Date: June 6, 2025
Genre: Electronic / Synthpop / EDM
Introduction
A Luminous, Lyrical Journey Through the Beauty of Impermanence
On Almost Forever, Caroline Chiesa returns with her sophomore album—an ambitious, emotionally intelligent, and gorgeously executed collection of progressive house music with an ethereal edge. Chiesa, a solo artist who handles 100% of her writing, production, performance, and mixing, brings a rare level of craftsmanship to the project. A classically trained former opera singer with deep roots in classical music and a rigorous work ethic, Chiesa leverages her extensive musical background to build a sonic world that is both technically refined and emotionally expansive.
At its heart, Almost Forever is a conceptual record about impermanence—the inevitability of change and the beauty of fleeting moments. As Chiesa herself puts it, nothing makes her skin crawl quite like the word forever. Instead, she embraces the transience of love, connection, and life itself, understanding that the very temporariness of something can make it more valuable.
A Concept Rooted in Emotion
Lyrically, Almost Forever is as much a philosophical musing as it is a musical project. It explores the paradox of longing for permanence while knowing that nothing—no feeling, relationship, or moment—truly lasts. The central question echoes throughout: If everything fades, why do we still love so deeply?
Chiesa’s answer is profound in its simplicity: because loving—even temporarily—feels better than not loving at all. This ethos infuses the album from beginning to end, turning each track into a meditation on connection, vulnerability, and letting go.
Sound & Style
From a sonic standpoint, the album is a shimmering blend of progressive house, ambient electronica, and vocal-driven pop, built primarily using Native Instruments plugins and Serum. Chiesa’s style invites comparisons to Sofi Tukker, Ellie Goulding, and RÜFÜS DU SOL, though she carves out a unique space that emphasizes both production clarity and emotional intimacy.
The instrumentation leans toward the ethereal and theatrical, but always with a deep-rooted house-forward energy. Beats pulse gently under airy synths, while Chiesa’s vocals—sometimes whispered, sometimes soaring—anchor the listener in emotional honesty.
Her classical training shows in the precision of her phrasing and dynamic control, yet she never over-sings. Instead, she allows restraint to amplify feeling, making subtle shifts in tone speak volumes.
Track-by-Track Analysis
1. Almost Forever
The opening number transports the listener into Chiesa’s world, with an ethereal synth blended with Middle Eastern strings and accompanying sounds, before dropping into a fantastic dance beat. Perfect opening for what is to come.
2. Dancing Elephants
Shimmering textures and syncopated synth rhythms carry Chiesa’s vocals as she evokes fleeting joy and nostalgia. There’s a weightlessness here, a sense that everything could slip away—and that’s part of the beauty.
3. Somebody
One of the more emotive tracks on the record, “Somebody” dives into the yearning for connection. The beat is minimal but driving, while layers of vocals weave around the central theme of needing someone—if only for a while. It’s melancholy, but not tragic—more reflective than desperate.
4. Reflection
This track feels like an internal monologue set to a midnight pulse. Sparse instrumentation leaves space for lyrical introspection, and the result is deeply personal. Chiesa examines identity, change, and memory in a way that feels both universal and singular.
5. When I Bleed
An emotional high point of the album. Here, Chiesa grapples with vulnerability and emotional transparency. The production gently crescendos, but never overpowers her message. It’s a song of exposure and truth, wrapped in glistening electronic ambience.
6. The Sweetest Apple
Light, playful, and melodic, this track is deceptively simple. On the surface, it evokes sweetness and temptation. Underneath, however, lies a quiet warning—what appears delicious may be fleeting, or even dangerous. Sonically, it’s bright and refreshing, acting as a mid-album lift.
7. Spaces in Between
Possibly the most experimental piece on the album. The sound design leans heavily on reverb and soft textures, letting silence and space take center stage. It’s a song about the unspoken—the pauses in dialogue, the moments of hesitation—and it’s deeply effective.
8. To Be With You Now
The song offers hope, presence, and acceptance. Thematically, it offer a more ambient, slower pace —embracing love not as a permanent state, but as something meaningful in the now. Chiesa’s vocals are vibrant yet graceful, and the arrangement lets her voice shine above gentle piano and pad underlayment. A graceful song.
9. Embrace Her Mystery
Slower tone here in the beginning, Chiesa’s vocals combine with natural tones and synthesized rhythms, combining with Oriental type bells, with a bassline that drives the listener forward.
10. Little Dove
Thematically, it brings the album full circle—embracing love not as a permanent state, but as something meaningful in the now. Chiesa’s vocals are warm and open here, and the arrangement lets her voice rise above the gentle piano and synth flourishes. It’s a heartfelt ending that leaves you grounded, not wistful.
Technical Artistry
The production is clean, deliberate, and emotionally attuned. Chiesa knows when to let a phrase echo, when to pull back, when to introduce a soft sub-bass or a delicate pad. Her background in classical training lends itself to a disciplined approach—but the discipline never feels rigid. There’s emotion in every layer.
What makes the album even more impressive is that Chiesa handled all aspects of its creation herself, apart from the final mastering. The album’s cohesion and polish are a testament to her meticulous attention to detail and artistic vision.
Final Thoughts
Almost Forever is not just an album—it’s a statement. It presents impermanence not as something to mourn, but as something to celebrate. Each track is a fleeting moment captured in sonic form—a memory preserved, a feeling examined, a thought gently sung.
Caroline Chiesa has delivered a work of clarity, emotional depth, and artistic integrity. In a time when so much music aims for immediate gratification, Almost Forever asks listeners to slow down, breathe in the moment, and embrace the beauty of its transience.
Verdict:
8.5/10 — A mesmerizing, honest, and technically impressive sophomore release from a rising solo artist. Almost Forever confirms that Caroline Chiesa is not just another electronic artist, but a visionary storyteller with something real to say—and the talent to say it on her own terms.
You can listen to the entire album here on Spotify:
