I remember it very distinctly: it was the spring of my senior year, and almost every Asian American in my high school was glued to their phone. All of us were trying to get tickets to keshi’s upcoming Hell/Heaven tour.
Vietnamese American singer-songwriter Casey Luong — more commonly known by his moniker, keshi — was a staple in our playlists. Now, coming off the success of a debut album with 3.1 billion streams and mainstream success, expectations were high with keshi’s sophomore album, “Requiem.”
Safe to say, he blew the expectations out of the water.
“Requiem” is a journey of hubris, loss and longing. At the same time, it is keshi’s rebirth.
“Requiem” brings entirely new and refreshing sounds to the singer-songwriter’s discography. It’s imaginative and experimental, but at the same time, it’s unabashedly keshi. While it’s still characterized by his iconic falsetto and dreamy vocals, the instrumentals have been carefully polished with astounding strings and percussion into a complete sophomore album.
At a certain point as a long-time listener, keshi’s R&B tracks with lo-fi beats began to feel repetitive. His debut album, “GABRIEL,” showed signs of promise as he explored ballads and refined his R&B sound. However, he ultimately didn’t venture too far out of his comfort zone.
Nonetheless, keshi is just at the beginning of his career and has time to traverse the world of music. For now, “Requiem” gives us a look into how keshi has polished and played around with his sound.
Here’s a breakdown of every song on the new album:
“AMEN”
Ly’s Rating: 8/10
The album starts off with keshi’s soft vocals before he abruptly transitions into a tone akin to arrogance. The title of “Amen” is almost mocking as he sings, “I don’t pray to God that’s a weakness / I’ve been playing God in arenas.”
While “Amen” is barely a minute long, he makes a clear statement for his long-time fans as he chants “I want more” to end the song: this album is going to be different — 8/10.
“SAY”
Ly’s Rating: 7/10
The transition from “Amen” to “Say” is rather jarring as we go from an angelic, yet chaotic beat to a groovier sound. Lyrically, it’s reminiscent of his older, more sultry songs, but this time, with a happier and tamer twist. However, the instrumental bares into new territory for keshi with a more upbeat, pop sound that’s reminiscent of ‘90s Japanese city-pop.
While it feels rather distant from the rest of the album, I quite enjoy the song regardless; put simply, it’s fun. Just like keshi hoped for, this song is definitely one to dance to — 7/10.
“NIGHT”
Ly’s Rating: 7.5/10
There is another sharp transition from “Say” into “Night” which opens with an introduction that makes you feel like you’re in a thriller. The sound is a bone-chilling sting chord that makes you feel like you’re at the climax of a jump-scare before an abrupt “requiem” pulls you out of the scene, and into the depths of keshi’s iconic falsetto.
Ironically enough, the lyrics maintain a similar sentiment: “Every move I make I feel them watching me / Try to run away but I can’t seem to make a sound,” keshi sings.
The startling SFX follows keshi throughout, instilling a sense of urgency throughout while simultaneously contrasting with the R&B elements of the song. “Night” is one of keshi’s more experimental songs; it’s Halloween-y and exploratory in all the right ways — 7.5/10.
“SOFT SPOT”
Ly’s Rating: 8.5/10
Imagine this: falling leaves, a chilly breeze, old hoodies and your local hometown band. This is what “Soft Spot” sounds like.
Out of all the songs in the album, “Soft Spot” holds just that in my heart. It’s romantic, dreamy and groovy — the elements for the perfect autumn-time-walking song. The electric guitar strumming throughout ties the song together into a cute little love song that feels extremely nostalgic — 8.5/10.
“LIKE THAT”
Ly’s Rating: 5.5/10
“Like That” is most similar to what we’ve previously seen from keshi: an R&B song with lo-fi beats and soft vocals. However, compared to “GABRIEL” and previous releases, “Like That” sounds a lot more polished. The second half of the song contains rather enjoyable moments where keshi overlaps lines with himself, reminiscent of 2000s R&B.
Not bad, but frankly nothing to write home about — 5.5/10.
“TEXAS”
Ly’s Rating: 8/10
Have I ever been to Texas? No. Does this song make me dream of chasing trains and the Texas heat? Well, yeah.
“Texas” is a song full of yearning and nostalgia. keshi hits close to home as he sings about the mental dilemma between chasing after your dreams or staying comfortable with what you know.
“When I ran from nothing, and I wanted everything … Don’t know where I’m going / But I think I gotta leave / Oh, take me home,” keshi sings.
In typical keshi fashion, we see the presence of lo-fi beats. However, the guitar, piano and harmonica adds a unique and nice touch to “Texas” that elevates the song
For those suffering a quarter life crisis as they navigate their 20s, listen to “Texas.” Not sure if it will make you feel any better, but you’ll relate — 8/10.
“DREAM”
Ly’s Rating: 8/10
One thing that keshi is particularly skilled at is creating toxic narratives for the dreamiest songs. Instrumentally, “Dream” is like floating on clouds. It’s a slower, acoustic song with a beautifully slow guitar strum and progressive piano melody.
However, lyrically, “Dream” is a nightmare scenario: the person you love is thinking about someone else.
“She’s a dream come true / But I have nightmares it should’ve been you,” keshi sings.
As the song nears the end, keshi’s soft vocals speed up and heighten in volume, thus, creating a sense of urgency within the listener. Beautifully tragic and full of guilty yearning; you’ve done it again, keshi — 8/10.
“WAR”
Ly’s Rating: 9/10
For some reason, keshi is always fighting demons. “War” is no different as he battles to hold onto a failing relationship.
“Built walls, drawn lines / Look at what we’ve come to lately / Broke glass, spilled wine / Caught up in the crossfire, baby,” keshi sings.
While his love is weak, “War” is one of the strongest songs on the album. From the tasteful staggering drum beat to the heavenly backing vocals and iconic falsetto, this song is hypnotizing in every way — 9/10.
“BODIES”
Ly’s Rating: 7.5/10
Like in life, you can’t have war without any bodies — whether they’re fighting for you or strewn onto the ground. keshi dips his toes into the world of pop-rock through “Bodies,” a song that directly parallels “War.”
In “War” keshi sings, “But you always stay / Just for old time’s sake.” In “Bodies,” he responds, “You don’t have to stay you know / If it’s all a waste of time.”
“War” was the fight for the relationship whereas “Bodies” is heartbreak thereafter. It’s a simple premise that keshi executed fairly well. It isn’t overtly corny and the track is well produced — 7.5/10.
“REQUIEM”
Ly’s Rating: 8/10
The closest way I can describe loss is like feeling the world closing in on you while your body goes numb in shock. It’s chaotic, messy and overall heartbreaking.
However, in “Requiem,” keshi packages the feelings of loss into a beautiful, gentle ballad full of heavenly piano melodies and heart-wrenching lyrics. Dedicated to his late friend, “Requiem” has a simple premise that explains the complex emotions of grief and loss very well.
“Oh, it’s not the same / I miss you everyday / Still some things I wish I told ya’,” keshi sings.
The song ends with an unfinished piano melody where the final chord is never played followed by a few seconds of silence. Goodbyes are never easy, and grief is even harder to navigate, but keshi manages to beautifully articulate loss into graceful melodies and gentle lyrics — 8/10.
“EUPHORIA”
Ly’s Rating: 6.5/10
“Euphoria” is a song that’s unabashedly loud about yearning for someone who might not be too good for you.
“She’s toxic for the thrill of it / Bad news, but I’m into it, she’s all mine,” keshi sings.
keshi is loud as he repeatedly sings the word “euphoria” while the guitars, piano and drums blare in the background during the chorus. It’s desperate and messy — just like how a toxic relationship is.
The lyrics feel a bit repetitive by the second chorus, however the instrumentals keep the song afloat. With an insane guitar solo near the end, most of my complaints are blown out of the water — 6.5/10.
“JUST TO DIE”
Ly’s Rating: 8/10
“Just To Die” feels like a reflection of the grief experienced in “Requiem.” keshi is retrospective as he sings on the harsh realities of life and is borderline nihilistic.
“You learn if you can’t do it twice / You do what you can / When you’re born into life just to die, oh,” keshi sings.
It almost sounds as if he’s completely given up until the end where he chants, “I don’t wanna die.” His shaken-up voice is accompanied by velvety strings in the instrumental. The song is heartbreakingly melancholic, but there’s a sense of perseverance at the end that brings listeners hope — 8/10.
“ID”
Ly’s Rating: 9.5/10
The album ends with “ID” — an outro that absolutely defied all my expectations. The listener is first greeted with an angelic melody reminiscent of church music. There’s a small build up before the beat changes into a hype song full of hubris and ego.
The final verse directly parallels his intro with its entirety being the lyrics of “Amen.” However, this time, he sings with a tone of desperation, completely void of his previous arrogance.
“ID” is a jumbled, purposeful mess of mixed emotions and abrupt changes, making it the perfect outro for keshi’s sophomore album — 9.5/10.
“Requiem” is now streaming on all platforms.