Flock Of Dimes – The Life You Save: Album Review

Live4ever 13 October, 2025

Artwork for the Flock Of Dimes album The Life You Save

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Flock Of Dimes’ vocals are prominent; we can hear in her voice that she’s lived a full life and has come out stronger on the other side.

Flock Of Dimes‘ Jenn Wasner is a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist known for performing as one half of the duo Wye Oak (although her career has led to collaborations with artists such as Bon Iver).

On The Life You Save, Wasner chooses to experiment with new genres, branching out from her previous infusion of electronic beat and rock music to the stripped back storytelling of Americana and folk.

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The Life You Save is an intimate exploration of Wasner’s personal life.

Rather than commenting as a third party on others’ experiences, she chooses to reflect inwards and explore her own relationship to her inherited trauma (Wasner doesn’t shy away from discussing heartbreak, addiction and co-dependency).

Wasner’s lyricism is reminiscent of her folk predecessors Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell; she’s able to share the same raw vulnerability whilst maintaining a gentle feminine approach.

She demonstrates her inner strength and the peace that comes with the acceptance that we can’t change the life we are born into, however we can try our best along the way to make it as worthwhile as we can.

Flock Of Dimes’ album’s opener Afraid begins with a powerful statement of resistance: ‘I did not enter this world afraid, and I refuse to leave it that way.’

Despite the strength shown in the lyrics, the instrumental provides a melancholic, sombre tone.

Wasner showcases her personal growth as she’s able to stand up and be strong and defiant. Although she’s experienced pain and hardship along her journey, she won’t succumb to what’s happened before.

Flock Of Dimes’ vocals are prominent and she doesn’t hide behind the instrumentation; we can hear in her voice that she’s lived a full life and has come out stronger on the other side.

One of The Life You Save’s highlights is the acoustic track Long After Midnight. On the track, Wasner is speaking to an unidentified individual (we know it’s someone relevant to her personal life, however we’re unsure as to whether it’s a friend, family member or lover).

Here she sings about the time and resources she’s given this person, even if she won’t get those material things in return: ‘All the money I gave to you, I know I will never get it back’.

Long After Midnight is a song of unconditional love; it signifies Wasner’s belief in hope and to not give up on someone during their toughest times (even when it isn’t specifically her problem to fix).

Again, we see this theme of resistance and inner strength from Flock Of Dimes in contrast to the gentle acoustic instrumentation.

Wasner closes the album with I Think I’m God. As The Life You Save has progressed we’ve seen her go from being quite detached from her own issues and focusing on others to reflecting upon herself.

In comparison to the opener, she’s come full circle and has let her defenses down and realised that she’s really not any different from everyone else.

Rather than trying to fix people, Wasner can see that she’s also a flawed person. Here, she finds a sense of freedom and release, like a breath of fresh air to overcome what’s stifled her in her past.

The Life You Save is a moving depiction of Jenn Wasner’s personal journey and inner growth; it showcases her ability to reflect on her own trauma’s and to overcome them. It’s beautifully emotive and inspiring as Wasner peels back the layers more than she’s ever done before.

She incorporates her talent for songwriting and storytelling together to create a great contemporary folk album which many will be able to relate to.

Lauren Scott

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Tags:Flock Of Dimes, Lauren Scott