Sarantos – “I Never Catch The Train” – an entirely reflective, yet powerful effort

Sarantos has made it his life’s mission to release a new song, music video, story chapter and poem, every month, for the entirety of his life. With each release, Sarantos donates a portion of proceeds to a charity selected by his fans. Now if that’s not an achievement in itself, to be proud of, the list goes on. Sarantos has been nominated for the International Music & Entertainment Association Awards, Hollywood Music In Media Awards, Josie Music Awards and the Hollywood Songwriting Awards. He currently has over 1 million Social Media followers and has been consistently rated #1 on Reverbnation in the rock and pop genres, worldwide. Sarantos has performed at multiple venues including the Toronto Music Festival to a sold-out live audience, and also hosts “The Songwriter Show” which is broadcast live on #1 ranked Pesmou Radio with listeners in 206 countries across the world, and every state in the US. Enough said about the accolades. What about the music?

As an artist who wears many stylistic hats, throughout his career Sarantos has damn near been completely consistent. Adeptly stepping in and out of genres, he’s still managed to maintain his standard of witty, insightful, and emotional songwriting, even when he’s diving far out of his comfort zone.

It’s fitting then that after 7 years, 14 albums, 178 songs, 7 accompanying fiction/fantasy books, and over 300K Spotify streams, as well as more than 1 million social media followers, the restless creative pours out another revelatory track, and sounds so comfortable doing it.

“I Never Catch The Train” searches inward, while looking outward, seeking inspiration by tracing life’s missed opportunities, sad losses and enduring afflictions.

Backed by a dominant and intricate bass arrangement and a subtly infectious rhythm, Sarantos voice is free to envelop the composition, drawing close attention to his lyrical content. The instrumental flourishes throughout the song never overpower the singer, creating enough open space for an entirely reflective, yet powerful effort.

“One of my favorite shows was the Big Bang Theory,” explained Sarantos, on discussing “I Never Catch The Train”. “I marveled at Jim Parsons’ character, Sheldon Cooper. He was fascinated with trains, and so was I, when I was a kid. So, during an episode, an idea sparked. This is a folk-country song about never catching the train on time. Did you ever have one of those days, or one of those months, when you’re just a step behind? When no matter what you do, your timing just isn’t right? I have.”

Sarantos’ unparalleled lyricism and musicality continues to reveal new facets of his ever-morphing personality. He is very good at writing songs. And with this latest statement, he’s not showing any sign of growing stale.

So what’s most striking about listening to “I Never Catch The Train” is that, nothing on this recording can be pigeonholed into one segmented version of Sarantos’ aesthetic, the track feels like it’s culled from the entirety of the singer-songwriter’s creative vision.

All in all, “I Never Catch The Train” takes familiar Sarantos traits – luscious instrumentation, affecting lyrics, and ear-warming melodies – and repackages them beautifully in a well-executed track that falls between alt-folk and country.