Written by Rebecca Ackerman
Cade Hoppe released his sophomore EP Everything That’s Wrong With You today, May 20th. The five-song EP explores themes like finding yourself and choosing the best version of yourself. On the EP, Hoppe says, “It might feel like the world is ending when the people that are supposed to love you unconditionally don’t approve of who you’re becoming, but then again, I think that says a lot more about them than it does about you.”
I’m the type of person who listens to the lyrics first before really considering the beat. I’m inspired by singer-songwriters with lyrical talent. I find lyricists everywhere like on my Discover Weekly each week on Spotify. Everything That’s Wrong With You is filled with lyrics that give me chills and all the feels, so I knew after first listen, I was going to come back to these songs. There’s no doubt in my mind that Cade Hoppe is certainly a talented lyricist.
With a voice that reminds of Jeremy Zucker’s, the 22-year-old artist launches into his EP with the title track, ‘Everything That’s Wrong With You.’ His baritone vocals are smooth and melodic in this upbeat, yet deeply emotional song. There’s a lot to unpack with this one, but starting the EP off with a more pop sounding song is an easy and effective way to entice a listener to keep on listening. ‘Everything That’s Wrong With You’ falls into the category of devastatingly sad lyrics hidden behind an upbeat production.
One of the lines that really hit home for me was “Nowhere to hide on the surface, so I’m digging so deep.” The words are powerful, but when you’re not paying attention, you may get lost in the sound behind the lyrics.
The next song, ‘Heart Safe,’ really exemplifies his vocal abilities. It reaches a lower range than the first song, proving Hoppe’s versatility. In this slow and tender song, Hoppe explores this idea of keeping a girl’s heart safe from any type of pain she experienced in past relationships. Hoppe goes to bat for her and promises protection and to never betray or hurt her, but all good things must come to an end. If I’m looking at this EP like a story, then following this song with ‘Hurts’ means something clearly went wrong between these two despite those promises.
One of the singles off this EP, ‘Hurts,’ is a clear shift from ‘Heart Safe.’ While ‘Heart Safe’ told the story of protecting someone, ‘Hurts’ marks an end to a relationship and how to move on from it. He describes the emotions of immediately losing someone and how much it hurts. The song builds from start to an explosive finish. ‘Hurts’ makes me feel like I'm in a teen romance movie and driving down a highway with my windows down: Think Perks of Being a Wallflower with Emma Watson’s character sticking her body out the car while driving through a tunnel on the highway.
Throughout the EP, Hoppe alternates between an upbeat song and a sad slow song up until the last two songs that are both much slower than the rest. ‘Don’t Watch Me’ might be his most vulnerable song on the EP. It gives off that insecure feeling of having people watch you all the time while you have no escape from it. When I first listened to this song, I wrote down that there’s a naked or stripped feeling to it like being exposed and having nowhere to hide. They’re watching your downfall when all you want to do is be alone. At the end of the song, all the production cuts away to just Hoppe and his guitar, amplifying this concept of being stripped down. It feels like a private prayer.
Hoppe closes out his EP with the other single released, ‘Morphine.’ ‘Morphine’ ends his EP on feelings of being alone and hopeless. Often, I find that albums and EPs end on a happier note, but that’s not the case here. It’s an interesting way to end something. Much like the EP ends, the person in the song also appears to be dying. The last line of the EP is “I didn’t think it would take dying to finally feel like I’m okay / At least I feel like I’m okay,” which expresses his earnest and brutal honesty that maybe we have to look inwards and be pushed right to the edge for things to start looking okay.
Everything That’s Wrong With You takes you on a story from start to finish. There’s so much raw emotion and beautiful lyricism in each of his songs that really pull you in. This EP has made me really think about the words he’s saying. I could spend a very long time analyzing the lyrics and the songs, but I’d much rather suggest you listen to the EP and see what it evokes for you. How do the songs make you feel and what, in your own life, can you relate to?
Hoppe is on his way to becoming an indie-pop mainstay, and there is so much ahead for him. Don’t miss your opportunity to fall in love with his music.
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