It’s hard to believe rising Tulane University sophomore Cole Hamilton didn’t begin writing music until his first year of college. It’s not that that’s too late in life, it’s just surprising considering the amount and quality of work he has already completed in such a short time when most of us were still trying to figure out which building our classes were in.
“I spent the whole year writing music and ended up with 20-plus songs,” Hamilton told us. “From those 20 I took my favorite four and made the [Afraid To Be Alone] EP.”
Hamilton recorded these tracks after returning to his hometown of Northbrook, IL where he reunited with high school friends Chris Neuhaus (drums), Paul Tisch (bass), Gracie Sands (guitar), Peter Roberson (trombone), Danny Neuson (trumpet), and Joseph Lee (saxophone) and worked with producer Craig Williams at Dr. Caw studios.
Afraid To Be Alone begins with catchy Two Door Cinema Club-inspired pop-rock tracks “(Just Between) Everyone You Know and Me” and "Louisiana" before descending into darker vocals evoking an Arctic Monkeys-esque swagger in “Crystal.” The EP ends with “Stay/Go,” a track adorned with a heavy horn section and an earnestness that will leave you wishing Hamilton would indeed stay instead of go.
Afraid To Be Alone is out now and available on Spotify, which you can listen to below.