Stream Gallant's debut album, Ology, with his exclusive guide to what inspired each song

From slow jam single "Bourbon" to the mighty, Zane Lowe Beats 1 'World Record' show-stopper "Weight In Gold", Ology offers a 16-song tracklist bursting with soul and remarkable vocals from the incredibly talented 24-year-old.

Belo, Gallant provides notes about his feelings while writing the album tracks, with Studio Ghibli, dying, dewy grass, and wafers all making an appearance...

First

At first, it was empty and I wasn’t really sure what to make of it or what to do next. I said I really wanted to learn more— I think that was genuine. When it showed up it was overwhelming and disorganised, and it beat like the pulse of a ventilator.

Talking To Myself

In high school I wrote this like short story thing about how ‘me’ and ‘myself’ were two different things—and they could have a conversation with each other— it was really bad, poorly written and I should be embarrassed.

Shotgun

A while back Adult Swim said that they were bringing Samurai Jack back in 2016. It’s 2016. Everyone flipped out when they announced it. I haven’t seen any trailers or anything tho, but I guess if Powerpuff Girls is back why not Samurai Jack too if you think about it. I made a playlist on Spotify that is purely the music from Samurai Champloo.

Bourbon

The tough thing about big cities for me— really just New York I think but there are others, too— is that it gives you this illusion of freedom by laying out this topography in front of you and nudging you a little forward and whispering “there you go”. But that’s the same shit we do to our hamsters and our bearded dragons and parakeets and ants. It’s fun for us because we went to the store and laid it all out for them and then we tell ourselves “oh they’re happy, they love that $1 toy and that newspaper and that ripped up piece of blanket I blew my nose on that one time and that brand of food that I would never let touch my tongue because that would be disgusting” but then we go out into what we know is the actual world.

Bone + Tissue

A 500-pack of fellowship cup communion wafer & juice (2-in-one) on amazon prime is $85.50.

Oh, Universe

It’s weird that in the morning when you walk outside you don’t do it barefoot because you know the grass is gonna be wet. That’s just how it is. It’s like evaporation or condensation or something, whatever though you just know it’s gonna be cold at night and in the morning the grass is gonna be wet. No it didn’t rain, that’s just how it is. The grass is gonna be wet. Probably cold too. That’s just how it is.

Weight in Gold

Steven Universe is the best show on television for real. The soundtrack is crazy. Plus it’s just an honest fucking show. Gravity Falls had a fixed story arc which is why it had to end (and I respect that decision) and Regular Show is very episodic, pretty stuck-in-time even though I guess the characters do evolve and bloom into better people as the series progresses. Rigby does at least. Mordecai learns from his mistakes. Sometimes I have a very rough time.

Episode

You made it out to be way bigger than it was, I made it out to be way smaller than it was, I talked to myself about it, I think it’s ok now.

Miyazaki

It’s hard to top Spirited Away but I think you said My Neighbour Totoro was your second favorite. I really liked Kiki's Delivery Service and Howl’s Moving Castle— Princess Mononoke was dope too. There were laptops from 2009 and cinderblock walls and overall the sound was a little muddy, but there was Tony Thompson and Groove Theory and Lisa Lisa if I remember correctly.

Counting

I assume it’s generally really dangerous building something as sacred and daunting as a viraha on a winding cliff, especially back then— like in BC times— with no modern tools to minimise margins of error, obviously nothing to really predict weather conditions. But those structures are still there today. The church in my hometown has this separate room they place people in when the main room is full, where you can watch the pastor preach on a flat screen TV via webcam.

Percogesic

The hardest level in Crash Bandicoot was the one where you’re running away from this giant boulder behind you because the whole perspective is all of a sudden switched— and on top of that you have to avoid these nitro and TnT boxes or else you’ll have to start from the beginning again which sucks. I had to do the level like fifteen times. My only criticism is that nothing changes with it— like the placement of the dynamite in front of you is always the same. Once you memorise it you’re good. So if I tried it now I could probably beat it the first time. Maybe the second.

Jupiter

Two years ago I said I wrote a song about you.

Open Up

It was February a couple of months ago and so everyone reminded me about the Valentine’s Day thing in elementary school where everyone gets a class list and goes home and writes cards and then you show up with a bag and collect. What sucked though was that there were always like one or two kids in that class who had just transferred in or something and so they weren’t on the class list and didn’t get any candy.

Skipping Stones

A lot of people live afraid of dying alone but it’s probably more terrifying if you’ve come to the end of your life and had never really given the possibility of dying alone any serious thought.

Chandra

This feels very uncomfortable.

Last

Oh, there you are. At last.

Ology is out now via Mind Of A Genius