Garrett Anthony Rice has a way of writing songs that feel like they were already waiting for you. His latest, “It’s Not The Summer,” steps out of the shadows with an easy glow, letting light in without rushing it.
The track is touched by Britpop’s golden haze, but it’s no nostalgia trip. Crisp guitars ring out over a gentle, steady pulse; breezy rhythms carry the song forward with the same patience that runs through its core. There’s a quiet acceptance here that life doesn’t always meet you where you want it to, and that’s fine. Seasons change. Things shift. It won’t be like this forever. And in Ireland, where summer rain often drowns out the sunshine, that irony lands all the more sharply.
“It’s Not The Summer” sounds like sunshine caught in a jar. The song flickers with familiar ghosts, a breakdown with Lennon’s trace in it, handclaps that carry the spirit of “Here Comes the Sun,” and a whistle at the end that drifts the way Otis Redding once did on “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay.” Rather than imitation, these touches feel like memories folded into something new, lived-in, and wholly Rice’s own.
The single adds a softer hue to the unfolding Equinox, the 18-track double album recorded between Ireland and the UK in 2024. Following the gospel haze of “Eden,” the road-dust grit of “In the Sun,” the urgency of “I Found Myself Today,” and the introspective burn of “Property,” this one opens a window and lets warmth spill in.
“It’s Not The Summer” doesn’t try to solve anything. It just offers what it has: patience, clarity, and the reminder that sometimes the best thing you can do is wait for the next season to come.