Don’t remember 2016? Listen to Ricky Montgomery’s latest EP

By Adri Pray

Coming off of the success of his 2016 single “Line Without A Hook,” Ricky Montgomery (he/him) released his latest indie-pop EP It’s 2016 Somewhere on April 15. Including five original songs and two acoustic versions of already-hits, Montgomery marks his territory with the nostalgic album, and captivates the listener as each second passes. 

“Intro,” with its marching band-feel to start the album, solely serves to transition anticipation into the following, “Talk to You.” This second track outlines the feelings Montgomery has towards a separation he’s gone through with a past partner. It’s clear from his message that he’s still into this person, but doesn’t believe they feel the same.

The lyrics, “Wonder if we met today / Would you turn and walk away? / Would you take me for a ride? / Would you toss me to the side?” don’t suggest an amicable breakup, so one could assume Montgomery’s point-of-view is that of the dumpee.

Relying heavily on delicate bells, the track manages to retain the listener’s attention as the choral line “I wish I could talk to you,” repeats over and over again. Unique sound effects including different voices on the piano, djembe, and a chorus of differing pitches add to Montgomery’s signature sound.

He chooses an upbeat, lively melody to accompany the sad message, a creative choice that is then repeated throughout the album, however the other songs on the album carry the same somber theme: heartbreak, loss, homesickness, and more.

The third track, “Sorry for You,” breaks away from the precedent of upbeat melodies, instead choosing to commence with a moving line from an acoustic guitar, a choice that both strips the album and softens his message. This song bends in the opposite direction of “Talk to You,” as Montgomery opens up about his childhood traumas.

The first verse gets right to the point: Montgomery is leaving his family for a reason unknown to this listener and he must say goodbye. “Now that it’s over / I don’t know how to feel / Moving to California / Where I won’t have to deal” bridges the verses into the chorus, and forces the audience to confront their own traumas they’ve suppressed, a theme that’s prevalent through the other songs on the album.

Long notes and tones elongate the melody of this song, including the crown jewel lyric “I wouldn’t want to make you sorry / For me.” Unlike “Talk to You,” “Sorry for You” diversifies its lyrics just enough to get snippets of Montgomery’s childhood and keep the listener’s attention, a difficult feat at this tempo.

“Mom (Interlude)” follows “Sorry for You,” and is almost entirely composed of a “butt dialed” message from Montgomery’s mother, save for the few harmonies Montgomery sings to add to the musical aspect of the message. The voicemail doesn’t detail anything specific — it’s mostly an ode to his mother and her struggles with technology — but by analyzing the message, the listener can understand more about Ricky Montgomery than is revealed.

Why Montgomery included the voicemail, one can only assume homesickness. After detailing his childhood struggles and family trauma, it probably meant a lot to him to include his mother’s voice on a piece of art that’s going to follow him forever. While the initial message is unclear, the sentiment for including the voicemail reins over what one could interpret to be impracticality.

Following slower tracks “Sorry for You” and “Mom (Interlude),” Montgomery hits his fans with a bluegrass-sounding track, “Settle Down.” The song details the seriousness of one of Montgomery’s relationships, a theory fans have attributed the message of this song to Montgomery’s ex-partner, Ashley Strongarm, from 2016. 

To conclude It’s 2016 Somewhere, Montgomery included acoustic versions of his hit song “Mr. Loverman,” a song that took off on TikTok during the pandemic and has garnered over 250 million streams on Spotify. While “Mr. Loverman” originally came off of his 2016 debut album, Montgomery Ricky, its 20’s resurgence poised Montgomery as an anticipated artist across social media.

“I Don’t Love You Anymore (Acoustic)” finished the album and is an acoustic remake of The Honeysticks and Ricky Montgomery’s joint 2018 EP, The Honeysticks. The track has a similar instrumental as the acoustic “Mr. Loverman” with a different energy. Channeling the feeling of finality, Montgomery closes his latest EP as effectively as he started it.
It’s 2016 Somewhere plays into the nostalgia people feel for a time six years ago and is absolutely worth a listen if you have twenty minutes to spare.