Shelf Life’s “Everyone Make Happy” is like a maudlin friend

 

Shelf Life | Photo by Ethan Holland | courtesy of the artist

Shelf Life – the project of long-time Philly musician Scotty Leitch – is streaming his debut album Everyone Make Happy in advance of its release this Friday. This follows the single teasers of “Double Dare” and “The Curse.”

Like those songs, the record mixes low-fidelity acoustic pop with eclectic synth arrangements. Like a slow, somber friend, Everyone is dark and envelopes the listener in a comforting and familiar sadness. You know the kind. It comes creeping behind you on misty, late autumn evenings, and yet you know the season would not be complete without it lurking nearby. And the album is personal. 

“Three years ago a man in a van ran a stop sign and crushed the entire lower portion of my right leg. Everything changed after that. I ditched the 4 track, bought a computer, and began writing songs I believed were representative of me as a musician and a human being,” Leitch explains.

Everyone Make Happy will be officially released September 18th via Lefse Records, but until then you can stream it in its entirety below. The band celebrate that night with a concert at Lavender Town; more information can be found here.