Album of the Week: Best Coast, 'Always Tomorrow'
by Jesse Wiza
February 24, 2020
When the first single from Best Coast's new album, Always Tomorrow, came out, songwriter Bethany Cosentino posted on Instagram, "I wrote this song in the midst of a deep depression. Not even about a life I was living, but about one I wanted to some day live." Manifest destiny. Always Tomorrow, is an album about change, getting rid of the things that do harm and focus on being the best version of yourself.
Musically this may sound like the laidback California sound you expect from Best Coast, but lyrically everything in changing. "Seeing Red" comes towards the end of the 40 minute long album, but it states a pretty clear thesis, "I'm sick and tired of writing love songs about unhealthy things". This album is full of optimistic love songs about being your best self. It's selfcare in song verse. As that Instagram post seems to point out, these songs aren't about being great right now. These are songs about the process, most lyrics have forward momentum: "People can change" ("For The First Time"), "All I can do is try" ("Rollercoaster"), "There's always tomorrow even when I'm drowning in my own sorrows" ("Master of My Own Mind"). That last song's lyrics include the album title, emphasizing that idea of a work in progress.
Keep the mantra going with a little help from Best Coast and their new album, Always Tomorrow.