When two forces collide, sometimes one overpowers the other, but sometimes they coalesce beautifully, creating something stronger than if they had stayed separate.
This Is What It Feels Like is the debut collaborative album from producer and songwriter Matt Bauer, who goes by the artist name Memory Spells, and rising songwriter, vocalist, composer, and producer Jordan Whitlock. The two seem to have found each other through a kind of artistic fate, their styles fitting together like missing pieces of the same puzzle.
The album traces two artists finding a shared voice across distance, capturing the moment a collaboration deepens into a connection that changes you, fitting for how interwoven their sound becomes.
The record carries an unusual origin story: the two wrote and produced the entire album remotely, sending files between San Diego and Los Angeles, and only meeting in person for the first time when they were already more than halfway through.
“This project began as an exchange of demos and became a deeply personal dialogue,” says Whitlock.
From the very first track, “Heaven and Here,” the ambient soundscapes pan left and right as if surrounding you like mist rolling off a foggy seaside cliff. Whitlock’s vocal ad-libs and strings begin to swell, growing louder with each moment. In one word? Beautiful.
It sets the tone for the rest of the record, showing that the pair didn’t take any shortcuts, instead setting the stage for an intentional and purposeful collaboration.
Rolling into the second track, “All I See Is You,” there’s a subtle nod to Rhye and Ethel Cain in the vocal cadence, marrying gentle stoicism with a dream-pop edge in the production that really carries it forward. The harmonies swell and are absolutely breathtaking. The repeating refrain “All I See Is You” allows the listener to bask in the romance of both the line and Whitlock’s performance.
“Take My Hand” marries elements of the first track with the lush background vocals, strings, and dreamy space Memory Spells and Whitlock have so expertly curated, where each track feels like it’s being recorded in a cloudy space that’s powdery, ethereal, and neither fully reality nor fully dream.
The heartbreak in “Take Away My Heart” is piercing, as Whitlock’s top-line melody is entrancing and her breathy vocals heighten the drama of what she sings about.
The production houses enough space for the listener to fully drop into the sadness alongside Whitlock as she delivers her performance. The spiral chant at the end of the track extends the atmosphere rather than disrupting what they’ve already built in the first couple of minutes.
Fast forwarding to “Higher,” a track with a soft pulse and groove that’s perfect for a long walk through your favorite destination. It’s songs like this on the album that differentiate themselves from the more lush ballad-like moments, offering a reprieve for the listener in need of a lift, perhaps one that takes them a little higher than the other tracks.
The album closes with “You Tell Me,” leaning heavily into folk with stripped-down production that brings together acoustic guitar, Whitlock’s vocals, and gentle keys around the 40-second mark.
The track includes profound, poetic questions such as: “You tell me/ Does a vulture ever learn to sing? Have you seen her cry / Or is she feeding off of all the others gone by?”
Each track on the album carries a sense of longing and possibility, threading through subtext like connection, vulnerability, and hope.
This Is What It Feels Like is a much-needed break from today’s world of diminishing attention spans and addiction to quick dopamine hits and quick fixes. It beckons you to stay awhile, release what’s been burdening you, and feel comforted by whatever is coming up for you right now.
A gentle yet powerful reminder that even in the darkest of times, music like this can and will prevail, soothing the listener or serving as the jumping-off point for a journey into self.
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Connect with Jordan Whitlock: Instagram | TikTok | Facebook
