Is Tonic Still "To Be Loved"?

2020 was a dumpster fire of a year. There's no getting around that fact. Just about everything that could have gone wrong did, and I have a sneaking suspicion life is never going to be the same again. For the second time in twenty years, we have lived through an inflection point, one of the watershed moments of history where the very nature of how we think is altered permanently. It was a horrible year full of pain and misery, but it will define both the near and long-term futures.

Through it all, I heard a lot of people say, "at least the music was good." Not for me it wasn't. There were the great songs and albums that got me through the toughest days, but by and large I would call it one of the weaker years in recent memory. At least for me it was.

The isolation of 2020 has given way to a blossoming 2021. No, the world isn't a better place yet, but all the time we had to ourselves has meant a flood of new music is now about to be unleashed upon us. It is such an unimaginable time in our history that I get to say this; my favorite band is back.

Tonic has not put out a new song since their self-titled album in 2010, but eleven years after that record, and several years after I had come to accept they were done making new music, we are being given a gift. I don't know if the pandemic and the world falling apart is what convinced them to start the band's engine again, or if it's to coincide with the twenty-fifth anniversary of "Lemon Parade" this year (I did extensive coverage of the twentieth anniversary, so I don't know if I will do anything this time), but does it matter?

Being able to write my thoughts about new Tonic music is something I never thought I would do again. I wrote a piece just last year asking myself if I even wanted to take the risk of new Tonic music disappointing me, but as soon as I saw the familiar art style pop up announcing a song was in the offing, all those doubts and existential questions quickly turned into nervous excitement.

So what is "To Be Loved"?

It's the most Tonic of Tonic songs, one that transports us back to the beginnings of the band. The classic rock influences of the 70s are more evident here than at any time since "Lemon Parade" with both the classic yet simple riff, and the slight effects that put a haze over Emerson's vocal. The mix sounds like a modern update of that record's gritty and dirty tone, which shows how the anniversary has been in their heads the whole time.

The trademark blend of Emerson Hart's acoustic and Jeff Russo's textural electric guitars is more classic Tonic, giving the song depth and nuance, and making it so you can listen to the song in different times, in different ways, and hear something new each time. Tonic is relaxed and confident, rocking just as hard as a group their age needs to. They have nothing to prove, and they prove exactly that. They wrote and recorded this song because they love music, they love this song, and they want us to feel the same way.

Eleven years ago, Tonic released an album that worked as a pause in their journey because it boiled down their first three albums into the essence of who Tonic is. With this first song since then, they are starting over from the beginning. It isn't just because of the time elapsed; Tonic feels fresh and vibrant on "To Be Loved", doing exactly what they are supposed to.

This song is indeed a gift from my favorite band, and all I can hope now is it won't be the last.