Artist: Citizen
Album: Halcyon Blues
Label: Run For Cover Records
Genre: Alternative Rock / Emo / Post-Hardcore / Indie Rock
Release: 7 August 2026
Tracks: 11
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Citizen have never been interested in standing still.
Across nearly two decades, the Ohio/Michigan outfit have moved through emo, post-hardcore, alternative rock, post-punk and indie without ever completely abandoning the emotional intensity that first made people fall in love with them.
And on Halcyon Blues, all those different versions of Citizen appear to meet in the same room.
This isnโt Youth Part II.
Nor should it be.
Instead, Halcyon Blues sounds like a band completely comfortable with where theyโve been and considerably more interested in where theyโre heading.
Itโs melancholic.
Itโs atmospheric.
Sometimes itโs bloody enormous.
Other times itโs almost painfully intimate.
And underneath everything is that unmistakable Citizen ability to make sadness sound strangely beautiful.
Right then.
Headphones on. Lights down.
Letโs get emotional, mun. ๐ค๐ง
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Track Listing
- Good Fortune
- I Can See You From Here
- Halcyon Blues
- Is It In My Brain?
- Always the Last One to Leave
- Either Way
- Matador
- Ether
- Smooth Talker
- Highs and Lows
- Anne
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Track-by-Track Review
1. Good Fortune
Citizen open proceedings with confidence rather than chaos.
Good Fortune immediately introduces the albumโs central contradiction: thereโs warmth within the music, yet something darker constantly lurks underneath.
Mat Kerekes sounds fantastic, delivering every line with that familiar sense that even relatively straightforward words are carrying considerably more emotional baggage than theyโre letting on.
A beautifully understated beginning.
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2. I Can See You From Here
Hereโs where Halcyon Blues really starts sinking its claws in.
Thereโs an immediate melodic quality to I Can See You From Here, but Citizen never sacrifice atmosphere for accessibility.
The guitars shimmer.
The rhythm section pushes everything forward.
And that chorus?
Yeah.
Good luck getting rid of that later.
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3. Halcyon Blues
The title track is gorgeous.
Simple as that.
Citizen lean into their dreamier side, creating an almost weightless atmosphere while subtle instrumentation gives the song an unusual cinematic quality.
Thereโs sadness here, but it doesnโt feel hopeless.
Instead, Halcyon Blues feels like remembering something wonderful while simultaneously accepting that youโll never experience it quite the same way again.
Oof.
Straight in the feels.
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4. Is It In My Brain?
Things get considerably stranger.
Thereโs nervous energy throughout Is It In My Brain?, with the instrumentation constantly creating tension beneath Kerekesโ vocals.
It feels restless.
Uncertain.
Almost claustrophobic.
Citizen resist the temptation to immediately release that tension, making the track increasingly effective as it progresses.
One of the albumโs most intriguing moments.
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5. Always the Last One to Leave
Right.
Who brought the emotional damage?
Always the Last One to Leave is beautifully vulnerable, allowing space within the arrangement to become just as important as the instruments themselves.
Itโs intimate without becoming fragile.
Sad without becoming melodramatic.
And precisely the sort of song you absolutely should not put on after three pints while scrolling through photographs from 2012.
Youโve been warned. ๐๐ค
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6. Either Way
One of those songs that sneaks up on you.
The first listen?
Lovely.
Third listen?
Hang onโฆ
Sixth listen?
Why am I singing this while making a cup of tea?
Either Way demonstrates Citizenโs knack for melodies that donโt immediately demand attention but gradually become impossible to shake.
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7. Matador
The guitars sharpen their teeth here.
Matador introduces more bite into the album, bringing some of Citizenโs heavier instincts back towards the surface.
Thereโs swagger beneath the frustration, creating a track that feels considerably more confrontational than what surrounds it.
Live, this should absolutely slap.
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8. Ether
After Matador bares its teeth, Ether allows everything to float again.
Dreamy guitars and spacious arrangements create one of the albumโs most atmospheric moments.
Thereโs something wonderfully hypnotic about it.
Close your eyes and disappear for a few minutes.
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9. Smooth Talker
Enough floating.
Time for some attitude.
Smooth Talker brings another welcome dose of aggression, with sharper guitars and a more confrontational vocal performance.
Citizen sound particularly comfortable when balancing melody with bitterness.
And thereโs plenty of both here.
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10. Highs and Lows
Massive.
Absolutely massive.
Highs and Lows feels like the emotional payoff the album has gradually been building towards.
The instrumentation expands, the drums push everything forward and the melodies suddenly feel widescreen.
Itโs powerful without becoming bombastic.
One of the recordโs undeniable highlights.
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11. Anne
And finally, Anne.
Citizen donโt attempt to end Halcyon Blues by smashing everything to pieces.
Instead, they let the record breathe.
Itโs reflective, cinematic and quietly devastating.
As the final moments disappear, thereโs that beautiful little pause where you realise youโre not quite ready to leave the album yet.
So naturallyโฆ
Back to track one.
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The Breakdown
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Vocals
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Mat Kerekes remains one of alternative rockโs most emotionally distinctive singers. Nothing feels forced.
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Guitars
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Shimmering melodies, abrasive distortion and atmospheric textures coexist beautifully.
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Rhythm Section
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Never flashy simply for the sake of it. Everything serves the songs, while the bigger moments hit with enormous impact.
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Production
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Rich, spacious and beautifully detailed without polishing away the emotional intimacy.
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Songwriting
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This is where Halcyon Blues really shines. These arenโt songs desperately chasing instant gratificationโthey reward spending time with them.
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Standout Tracks
๐ Halcyon Blues
๐ค Always the Last One to Leave
๐ฅ Matador
โก Highs and Lows
๐ Anne
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The Riff Report Verdict
Halcyon Blues isnโt an album desperately trying to remind everyone who Citizen used to be.
Thatโs precisely why itโs so good.
The emotional DNA of those early records remains everywhere, but years of experimentation have given Citizen a considerably larger musical toolbox.
They know when to get loud.
They know when to disappear into atmosphere.
And perhaps most importantly, they know when to leave space.
Thereโs confidence in that restraint.
These songs donโt repeatedly punch you in the chest demanding an emotional reaction.
They wait.
And then somewhere around listen number three, you suddenly realise theyโve quietly moved into your head and started rearranging the furniture.
Sneaky sods.
Citizen have made an album about emotional contradictions that sounds appropriately contradictory itself.
Dark but strangely comforting.
Melancholic but never hopeless.
Mature without becoming boring.
Beautiful without becoming overly polished.
Halcyon Blues feels less like Citizen searching for their next identity and more like a band realising they donโt actually need one.
They can simply be Citizen.
THE RIFF REPORT RATING
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5/5 GUITARS
Melancholic. Atmospheric. Vulnerable. Beautiful.
Citizen have delivered an album that doesnโt shout for your attentionโit quietly earns it. And once Halcyon Blues gets its hooks into you, good luck getting the bugger out. ๐ค๐๐ค
