In “Fleeting,” indie artist Sarah Kinsley paints an ethereal and transcendent landscape of dream pop. White gossamer and tinted blue hues, the album is a testament to yearning, desire, and inevitable change. The album draws inspiration from synth pop and the indie dream pop scenes of the 80s and 90s.
In recent years, the act of yearning has successfully entered the mainstream. From books like “Normal People” to artists like Matt Maltese, the people yearn to yearn. As the word becomes increasingly commonplace, its use becomes oversaturated and often incorrectly used. Yet in “Fleeting,” Kinsley encapsulates the feeling perfectly — the unquenchable desire, the risk, and the inevitable comedown.
The album kicks off with “Lonely Touch,” and acts as a precedent for the rest of the album. In a world of modern dating and loneliness, the track captures the want to be loved and to love another. Kinsley herself describes it as “an homage to the vulnerability of longing…wanting to feel the edges of another’s soul, becoming one in the dark together.” Accompanied by synth and piano, Kinsley sings, “How to say what I want / Is to talk but not talk / Is to feel without hands.”
The next track, “Truth of Pursuit” feels like the song in a dramatic montage during a spontaneous downpour. The track encapsulates the feeling of deep desire and the pursuit of another; Kinsley admits, “Cause I’m in pursuit of the feeling of you / It’s the truth of pursuit.” And yet it’s more than that — it’s the feeling of giddiness that can only come from a crush. Kinsley’s lilting voice glides like water as she sings, “Oh, I wanna feel alive / Like I did, like I used to.”
Beginning with a soft piano, “Reverie” is a delicate acoustic that builds into something greater. Complete with piano, guitar, and strings, the track sounds exactly like its namesake: a daydream. “After All,” featuring British artist Paris Paloma is in a similar vein, and Kinsley and Paloma’s voices blend beautifully together to form another piece of Kinsley’s dreamlike puzzle.
“Fleeting” is about more than just yearning. It’s about the inevitable change that occurs when you’re in love or when you’re simply moving through life; slipping past your fingers like silk. In “Truth of Pursuit,” Kinsley sings, “I can’t deny something between us changed / I felt the sea and now I’m standing in the drain.” The track details the thrill of limerence and the imminent comedown.
Yet this thread is most discernible in the namesake of the album — the last track, named “Fleeting,” reminiscent of Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own.” There is no better title for the song — it feels fleeting in a way that is impossibly perfect, both sonically and lyrically. Kinsley describes the experience of an unspecified feeling that is ephemeral, temporary, and fleeting. Kinsley repeats, “The answer is always fleeting… It’s not forever, it’s just a feeling / It’s not forever, it’s only fleeting.” “Fleeting” encapsulates the entire album as a whole: evanescent, dreamlike, and forever changing.
In “Fleeting,” Sarah Kinsley transforms into something divine, something that transcends borders. Kinsley has been an artist to watch, and she proves to be a force to be reckoned with in “Fleeting.”
