37:44 // August 29th, 2025 // Run For Cover Records
While Runnner has made approximately nothing but good songs, his music has mostly been good in that exact capacity: songs. The debut album like dying stars, we’re reaching out was decently lovely, but its fairly simplistic emo-folk songwriting didn’t allow for great replayability as a full record; instead, I mostly find myself returning to the highlights “runnning in place at the edge of the map” and “bike again.” Thankfully, A Welcome Kind of Weakness fixes that exact problem: this album is consistently enjoyable, swapping out the less interesting elements for lush textures and an excellent vocal performance by mastermind Noah Weinman. There are still clear highlights, like the jazziness of “PVD,” the stadium-sized melodies of “Sublets,” or every second of the perfect country-tinged indie rock banger “Chamomile.” Moreover, this record finds Weinman refining his somewhat quirky lyrical tendencies, channeling different kinds of pain into poetry that feels as hyper-specific to his torn Achilles as it is universally applicable to heartbreak. A Welcome Kind of Weakness is a breakup album, but it refuses to feel like one. Instead, Runnner bathes uncertainty and pain in lavish melodies, making small moments feel big while retaining a real sense of intimacy.
8/10