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Rogan Mei blasts onto the scene with a firecracker of defiance pumping through its guitar-driven pulse, in his single “Rushmore (So What). It’s a track that doesn’t just talk, it shouts, wrestles, and finally emancipates, capturing all the friction of wanting change and daring to live it.
Mei dives bomb-like into a cyclone of restless energy. The chorus, sharp, unflinching, and ready to be hollered back, flips the song into something communal. This is folk-rock with the teeth filed sharp, all punch and beauty, testing its limitations for grit but never quite kicking away suits and ties.
“Rushmore (So What)” originated from a half-formed idea that Mei had left dormant for years, a cross-country journey in which the protagonist, preoccupied with their own thoughts, snoozes through landmarks like the Grand Canyon and Mt. Rushmore. One of the lines that stuck around, rewritten dozens of times, eventually became a kind of heartbeat to the song. That dismissive shrug of a line would now be quoted as the battle cry for charting one’s own course, even if you miss whatever else they swear you ought to see.
A master of entwining introspection and melody, the Barrie, Ontario-based indie-folk artist hones his sound here into something louder and less yielding than the reflective work of his past. Freed from the shackles of programming demands, the songcraft shines through in a big way. Arcade Jack Johnson or John Mayer fans will find appeal not only in the soulful storytelling, but also in Mei’s upping the ante, as he, instead of cracking open, kicks down the door. On “Rushmore (So What),” Rogan Mei isn’t serving a song, but rather a moment of release. Unapologetic, edgy, and alive, it’s music to scream out the car window on a night when you feel like the world is just too damn small.
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