LOS ANGELES, CA- Just days before the release of her sophomore album Paracosm, Absolutely has unveiled its cinematic title track, and if the song is any indication, this record is going to be massive in both scope and spirit.
I first caught Absolutely live at The Wiltern last year when she opened for Banks. Even then, there was something theatrical about her presence. She did not simply perform songs. She built atmosphere. Since that night, I have followed each single drop from Paracosm with growing anticipation, sensing that she was constructing something far bigger than a collection of tracks.
The word “paracosm” refers to an elaborate imaginary world created inside one’s mind, often by children. It is a private universe with its own rules, landscapes, and emotional logic. That definition alone feels like a key to understanding this album. Absolutely is not just releasing music. She is inviting us into a fully formed interior world.
The title track opens like a music box creaking to life. Wintry keys and hushed vocals set an eerie stillness before the production begins to expand outward. By the time the chorus swells, the sonic palette feels almost orchestral. Lush textures bloom around her voice. The scale is cinematic, grand, and immersive. It feels otherworldly.
And yet, the lyrics sit in stark contrast to that magnitude.
“It’s such a big world, sometimes I feel small,” she sings, comparing herself to a child learning to crawl in a room full of towering adults. There is a vulnerability here that feels painfully honest. The irony is striking. The song itself sounds enormous. The production fills every corner of the sonic spectrum. But within that largeness, Absolutely articulates a feeling of smallness.
That tension is what makes “Paracosm” so compelling. The emotional core is intimate, almost fragile. The soundscape surrounding it is expansive and bold. It mirrors the experience of being an artist stepping into a vast industry landscape, unsure of where you stand but unwilling to shrink yourself.
In the bridge, she sings, “Maybe some things are not meant to change / This life makes less sense as I age / The best pieces of me, they remain / Just a little bit strange.” It feels like a thesis statement. Growing up does not mean abandoning imagination. It means protecting it. The “strange” parts are not flaws. They are the foundation of her creative identity.
That creative identity has often existed alongside her sister RAYE. Sharing a stage and a bloodline with a global phenomenon could easily cast a long shadow. But “Paracosm” does not sound like someone trying to compete. It sounds like someone carving out sacred space.
If anything, the song suggests that Absolutely is claiming a world that is entirely her own.
The singles released so far from the album have all hinted at this same sense of scale. The arrangements are dynamic and textured. Strings swell. Synths shimmer. Vocals move from whisper-soft to sky-reaching belts. There is a confidence in the production choices that feels deliberate. Nothing sounds accidental. Everything feels constructed with care. It is rare to hear an artist so fully commit to atmosphere this early in their career. The sonic architecture of “Paracosm” alone suggests an album that rewards deep listening. This is not background music. This is music that demands to be experienced.
As a vinyl collector, I already know this is a record I will want spinning on my turntable. Albums that feel immersive and cinematic tend to translate beautifully to wax. If a vinyl pressing becomes available, it will be hard to resist pre-ordering it.
With Paracosm, Absolutely is building a universe. A place where imagination is preserved. A place where feeling small does not mean being insignificant. A place where the “strange” parts remain intact. And in a world that often feels overwhelming in its scale, that kind of carefully constructed inner universe might be exactly what listeners need.
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