Coming from a small neighborhood in Rochester, New York, alternative pop band Joywave released their first official studio album, “How Do You Feel Now?,” on April 14, 2015. As someone who primarily listens to the alternative pop rock genre, I am confident when I say this is my favorite album of all time. Joywave is one of my favorite bands and I had the privilege of seeing them at Uptown Live in Chicago in Sept. 2025, which was super fun and one of the best concerts I have ever seen.
Despite the band itself not gaining much popularity, their music has had much prevalence in various aspects of pop culture. The band first gained relevance when singer Daniel Armbruster did vocals for “Dangerous” by Big Data, a song that most people have probably heard at least the chorus of even if they do not recognize it by name (seriously, go look it up). Their song “Destruction” was used in the launch trailer for Fortnite. In addition, they did musical work for the game Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, appearing as a fictional band called Yubnib Zekk and the Main Characters. Additionally, Joywave remains one of the very rare instances where Disney allowed a musician to use samples from their classic films. “How Do You Feel Now?” includes vocal and musical samples from “Peter Pan,” “Bambi” and “Dumbo.”
“How Do You Feel Now?” opens with the track “Somebody New,” described by singer and songwriter Daniel Armbruster as a “lazy love song” that stems from feeling “unappreciated by the world around you.” It is followed by “Carry Me,” a not-so-lazy love song showcasing the singer asking for someone to love him but acknowledges that kind of love may be hard to find, especially when faced with a person with their own issues and insecurities. He questions his ability to find someone “strong enough,” someone to make him feel like there is “church in [his] heart.”
The song “Tongues,” featuring Rochester electronic artist KOPPS, explores a “disconnect between one’s peers,” and seeing those around him voice their dreams and goals but never go on to achieve them. The song explores this concept by comparing it to hearing people “speak in tongues,” a reference to a concept where people speak in a language not known to them, often contributed to a divine, religious message.
“Tongues” is followed by the song “Destruction.” A song deemed by Joywave as “the best song ever written,” it is known to be played twice (or up to eleven times, in some instances) during live shows. A promotional fake album titled “Swish” (a play on the working title for Kanye’s “The Life of Pablo”) featured Destruction eight times in a row under different titles that formed the sentence “Why be credible when you can be incredible?” which was then followed by an additional single titled “Life in a Bubble I Blew.”
The track “Now” is described as “the furthest in the ‘rock’ direction” the album goes. It leads into the song “Parade”, which is specifically about how Daniel Armburster felt DJing clubs in Rochester in the early 2010s while sober—but is more broadly about loneliness and not feeling like you fit in with those around you. The feeling of wondering if everyone else knows something you do not.
“In Clover” is preceded with an audio excerpt from “Bambi,” showcasing a conversation between Bambi and Thumper about eating clovers. The song is described by Armbruster as a “four and a half minute conversation trying to convince myself that everything will work itself out.” “In Clover” has a fantastic transition into the next song, “Feels Like a Lie.” This song follows the loneliness of being left behind by those around you, with the singer feeling like being abandoned is being “put … in [his] place” and describes the feeling as being “stored above [his] ribcage.”
The next song on the album is titled “Traveling at the Speed of Light.” This is, in my opinion, the best song on the album. It is beautiful in concert, and a song I had been anticipating seeing live for months in advance. The singer begins by describing his wishes to experience the wonders of the earth in a down-to-bone way, and goes on to express his desire to know why he loves another person, who he describes as his “piece of Heaven.” The song follows the singer in metaphorical trips around the world and universe to find the reason why he cares for this person so much when they do not feel the same.
Singer Daniel Armbruster states that the track “Nice House” is best described in one sentence: “I thought this would be different.” The song follows him walking around his house, stating he does not recognize who he has become. He reflects on his past assumption that his life would be terrible, singing, “I thought I’d have a nice house to blow my brains out.” It is a very melancholic song, and Armbruster wrote it “in less than an hour” because it felt very natural to him.
The final track of the album, “Bad Dreams,” is based off the biblical phrase, “The prophet has no followers in his hometown.” It serves to describe the feeling of coming back to his hometown of Rochester and seeing people he once knew, but now with the success he has from music. He worries that people will dislike him and not want to associate with him any longer due to this fact. The track ends with an excerpt from “Crocodile’s Theme” from “Peter Pan,” which loops back to the beginning of the album due to having a similar instrumental to “Somebody New.”
“How Do You Feel Now?” is a beautiful album best experienced in order and listened to in one sitting. I believe that it showcases how albums are better perceived as art pieces instead of just a compilation of songs. I do not believe I can pick a favorite song from the album due to this reason. The album ends with an instrumental, leaving you to reflect on the experience and ask yourself one final question: how do you feel now?
