“Howl” by Aaron Orr
Written for Tongue Tied Magazine, May 2022
Oregon-based Aaron Orr, has released his first single of 2022 and the first release since his debut album, Nothing Sacred, in 2020. "Howl" is the fifteenth song on his discography thus far.
Photo by Joey Skeele
Creating this song from his bedroom, "Howl" is a slow piano ballad mixed with passionate, long-lived vocals. This DIY-artist is to credit for all of this single's vocals, recording, and production, even making time to explore new sounds and work on more music for his future. My favorite part of this song is how effortlessly Orr is able to harmonize with himself. There's something more genuine about this than outsourcing background vocals to another artist. This further plays into the uniqueness of his current work.
Personally, I hear "Howl" as a metaphor for calling out into the emptiness of the world, hoping someone will answer back. Aaron sings, "Do you hear me singing your name? ... Howl into my lungs / I will hold my breath this time ... Have we howled / Quite enough?". We can only call out so many times until we find the courage to move on. It leaves you wondering if someone was ever there to listen or if we were always alone. "Howl" is a beautiful song and shows a lot of growth - both lyrically and vocally - for Aaron as a professional. His current audience is small and personal, which is perfect for his current discography. I think Aaron has a lot more talent than he is portraying with this single and I'm hoping we will be able to hear more of his range in future releases. This is where he would truly be able to set himself apart from being a coffee-shop artist to performing in front of a much larger audience.
Aaron Orr
Listen to “Howl” here.