Album Review: The Great Divide
- Derek Foster
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
At 29 years old, Noah Kahan has become one of the biggest singer-songwriters in the world. Garnering a large amount of fame off of his hit song “Stick Season” and album of the same title, Noah has taken himself truly from the bottom to the top 10 years in. His emotional and introspective writing makes you feel what he feels through his songs.
I personally only discovered him with the album previous to this one, and I’m happy to consider myself a fan of him and his music. In late January of 2026, Noah Kahan announced his new album, The Great Divide, with an April 24, 2026, release date. He released two singles ahead of the album: “The Great Divide” and “Porch Light,” and the album met that release date perfectly on time. I want to talk about these lead singles because I’m impressed at how heavy they are for being the first teasers of the album.
“The Great Divide”
“The Great Divide” was written two years before its release. In that song, Noah talks about someone who might have been a friend he used to have. He talks about how they never really had conversations that were deeper than surface level and how they “were just morons, who broke skin in the same spot.”
In an effort to gain understanding of them, Noah asked more and the friend kept everything inside. In the pre-chorus, Noah says:
“You know I think about you all the time, And my deep misunderstanding of your life, And how bad it must have been for you back then, And how hard it was to keep it all inside”
This leads into a chorus where he wishes the best to this person but hopes that they don’t live in fear, ending with:
“I hope you're scared of only ordinary s***, Like murderers and ghosts and cancer on your skin, And not your soul and what He might do with it.”
In that moment, the song became personal to me. As someone who has a questionable relationship with my faith, I’ve essentially said that exact conversation to many others—to not wish negativity on someone with different beliefs but also hope they aren’t living a less fulfilled life out of fear for a potential afterlife.
In the song’s outro, hammering in the idea, he says:
“I hope you threw a brick right into that stained glass, I hope you're with someone who isn't scared to ask, I hope that you're not losing sleep about what's next, Or about your soul and what He might do with it.”
He understands in the song that he misunderstood the friend, but he also hopes they found someone who can understand them and, therefore, help them live a better life.
“Porch Light”
The second single, “Porch Light,” is written from the perspective of Noah’s mother. Just in its sound change, it’s different from the music Noah has previously released. In the first verse he says:
“I would ask you how you've been, it's all over the internet, But, hey, I mean, you knew that after all. If you're looking for an autopsy or a half-a***d half-apology, Then I think you picked the wrong time to make this call. It is not irrelevant that you stopped taking your medicine, but I'm giving you the benefit 'cause it's raining out.”
Dismissive and cold in tone but still with love at its core. In the refrain throughout this song we hear: “But it's cold, and it's cold, and it's cold, and it's cold, and it’s cold. And I don't know, I'm alone, I'm alone, I'm alone, I'm alone,” which sets the tone and speaks to the isolation his mother feels.
The pain in the chorus, once you understand the perspective, is so strong:
“Poison spreading to my lungs, I ain't holdin' breath, ain't holdin' any faith at all, And I'll pray for you, be in pain for you, I'll leave the porch light on, Heartbroken, each morning when it's me that turns it off.”
Even within that last line, you understand that she’s scared and more concerned than anything for Noah.
Final Thoughts
I want to take this moment to highlight: these were the first two songs we heard from the album, and they are so insanely deep and heavy. What I get from this is that Noah is going through a journey within himself—one that may involve some self-healing but one that’s honest.
Similar motifs appear throughout this entire album, and every song could have a deep dive in itself. I urge you, if you’re a fan of music with deep and emotional feelings, to really dive into this album. In doing so, I fell in love with it. It made me smile, it made me cry, it made me think, and I learned things.
It’s incredible. Noah found a way to improve off of his already stellar previous release and put out one of the most emotional, introspective, and impactful releases in recent memory. I hope that Noah himself is doing well and was able to heal himself in a way with this release. Overall, this is one of my favorite albums that has come out in a long time and I genuinely recommend it to anyone and everyone. It’s beautiful in sound and so incredibly deep for those who wish to find more meaning in lyrics. This album will hold up for a very long time.