The latest song from Ryan Cassata, "a Knack for Overthinking," rolls in like a wave of bare emotion, revealing itself in the raw form of pop-punk only he knows how to do. One of the tracks from his debut LP, "Greetings from Echo Park," isn't just a track on the album but rather a colorful release of anxiety, introspection, and, appropriately enough, survival from an artist that has never been more deserving of a spot under the spotlight, for he's danced through the fire and sung about it.
A product of a tumultuous period in Cassata's own life during which he's been living with autoimmune illness and Lyme Disease, the emotional heft of "a Knack for Overthinking" isn't so much musical theater as it is pages ripped from a journal. This song is musically fierce, an emo-inflected punk number that keeps driving forward, punching with the momentum, however musically, even as the lyrics dive deep into mental spirals and emotional instability.
The guitar lines are restless, and the vocal delivery is somewhere between defiant and wounded. Every element seems tightly twisted, like the mental state it describes. Cassata doesn't sugarcoat the pain of intrusive thoughts but instead leans into them, normalizing them and allowing you to feel uncomfortable for a moment and perhaps work through a bit of your own mess.
"a Knack for Overthinking" displays Cassata's ability to combine a high-octane genre with gut-level honesty. He's not attempting to be polished or perfect, but instead, he's welcoming us into the mayhem of a mind perpetually at war with itself. It is emo punk for the overthinkers, the insomniacs, and the fighters, and it won't be ignored.
This is music with a mission. Beneath its catchy hooks and driving rhythm, "a Knack for Overthinking" reverberates with a more profound message of survival and identity, especially potent coming from a trans artist who's made activism as part of his art as the hook itself. Ryan Cassata isn't only making music. He's building lifelines, and "a Knack for Overthinking" is one of the strongest ropes he's thrown out.
Discover Ryan Cassata on Instagram