American-Korean indie band Run River North has created a sound for themselves that feels incredibly on track with today’s popular alternative scene but is very strongly unique to the band.

While gaining more and more attention, Run River North still pride themselves on being a completely independent band, genuinely living up to their indie title. Their fourth full-length album, Creatures In Your Head, is set to be released on February 12. The record features five singles: ‘Lonely Weather’, ‘One For Me’, “Hummingbird’, ‘Cemetery’, and ‘Pretty Lies’. 

The ten-track record begins with the title track, ‘Creatures In Your Head’, and it makes the listener want to dance despite its heavy topic: mental health. The song lends a perfectly catchy tune to such an important subject. It’s followed by ‘Spiders’, a song that begins with an acoustic sound that gradually picks up as it continues. The message of ‘Spiders’ is one that we all need coming out of 2020 into a 2021 that seems as though it will be equally as bad: the bad times don’t last forever; this is simply how it is now, but not always. 

‘Pretty Lies’, the first single on the tracklist, holds an utterly chaotic sound that suits the song’s narrative to a tee. It’s upbeat and jumpy. Creatures In Your Head then moves into the next single that illustrates the hardships of seasonal depression. ‘Lonely Weather’ is easily the standout song of the record, with its sincere lyrics and its sound reminiscent of early The Neighbourhood records. While the sound gives the listener a pleasant flashback to the 2013 alternative charts, it’s a wholly unique sound that could only be created and pulled off this well by Run River North. 

‘Hummingbird’, the next single off the record, carrying the same upbeat sound that is well established in the first four songs, only with a slightly more somber tone. ‘Funhouse’ picks this tone back up and serves as a good buffer of a very catchy, upbeat song before the record moves directly into ‘One For Me’, another single without notice. This single is a subdued love song written for someone who does not seem the same. The lyrics are almost pleading, stating that the relationship will be worth the fight.

‘Cemetery’, the final single off Creatures In Your Head, is reminiscent of bands like The XX, only faster and more exciting. The song is a harmony filled love song. Then there’s ‘Goodnight Moon’, a sweet song seemingly written as an ode to family. The song reminds the listener that everything is going to be alright. 

The album wraps with ‘Weight’, a song that feels like the exact opposite of ‘Lonely Weather’, feeling much happier than the rest. 

Creatures In Your Head is centered around mental health and the importance of it. The album carries the topic in a perfectly catchy package. Fans of the current alternative charts will love this album. Run River North can fit perfectly into the top alt hits while being distinctly themselves.