Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler have returned with brent iii, a full-length album as a part of their brent series. Released on November 1, 2024, via Mercury Records, the duo's brent series has always been synonymous with intimacy, vulnerability, and pure raw emotion. With the third installment of their collaborative series, brent iii sees the duo venture even deeper into a folk-pop soundscape, that is also enriched by rock-inspired elements that add a fresh dynamism to their signature style of songwriting. The result is a cohesive yet adventurous album that showcases both their growth as artists and songwriters and the enduring magic of their collaboration over the last six years. “The largest difference in our writing or storytelling is hopefully that we're more mature and able to look at and write about more complex and nuanced emotions than we were able to when we were making the first two brent projects,” Chelsea states. “ We're just a few years older and going through more complex stuff in life. So naturally, we kind of write about more specific things," Jeremy adds. “The older you get the more complex your emotions get and the less singular they get.”
Where the first two brent albums leaned heavily on atmospheric ballads and bedroom pop aesthetics, brent iii opts for a more organic, instrument-driven approach. Acoustic guitars, layered harmonies, and minimalistic production serve as the backbone of the whole album. Yet, tracks like “ashes & rust” that are introspective and touch on transgenerational trauma and the anthemic and infectious “black & white” -which is about the pair's genuine appreciation for their fans- introduces a gritty, electric guitar element reminiscent of the pair's extended version of the brent ii track, “emily.” This fusion of folk-pop and subtle rock elements makes brent iii feel both familiar and refreshingly new.
The album opens with the track, “ashes & rust,” a delicate yet powerful introduction that sets the tone of the album's eleven tracks with its poetic lyricism and textured instrumentation. “A-frame” follows, painting vivid imagery of solitude and reflection, anchored by a mesmerizing duet highlighting Zucker and Cutler’s vocal chemistry.
The two songs, “I miss you” and “terrible things,” come right after and delve into themes of heartbreak and longing, their emotional weight is amplified by stripped-back musical arrangements. "terrible things" in particular came from a moment of spontaneous songwriting. Cutler shares, "I remember Jerm was at the piano playing a chord progression and I just started singing and started improvising a lot of the lyrics that ended up becoming the hook of 'terrible things,' and I just remember so distinctly, we were like making eye contact, smiling during it." Meanwhile, the album's sixth track “five minutes” offers a moment of intense introspection, its tender lyrics supported by a haunting melody that lingers long after the song ends.
As brent iii nears its descent, the duo offer up two solo tracks which provide a deeper glimpse into each artist's individuality. Jeremy Zucker delivers the short tune “toothbrush song,” which is a quirky yet melancholic tune that feels intensely personal, while Chelsea Cutler’s softly serenades with the song “love you into loving me” is a soaring ballad showcasing her vulnerability and vocal prowess.
“And the government too!” is a surprising standout—its satirical tone about a long-distance Intercontinental relationship, bundled with its lively instrumentation add a playful yet poignant twist to the album. Where the second to last track, “just breathe,” is a breathtaking reminder of resilience, leading into the equally hopeful closer, “good things,” which encapsulates the warmth and optimism that defines the whole brent series.
Lyrically, brent iii delves into familiar territory—love, loss, self-discovery—but with a maturity that reflects Zucker and Cutler’s artistic evolution over the years as artists. The folk-pop production on the album creates a cozy, almost nostalgic atmosphere, inviting listeners to immerse themselves in the stories woven throughout the album. “We write about individual experiences outside of our friendship,” Zucker admits. “Usually it's romantic love and we vent to each other about things that are going on in our lives individually, so the songwriting process is kind of partially therapizing if we're one of us is singing or writing about this really specific thing, the other one is really there to help get it out of them and help support them and help translate it into a song,” he continues. “Oftentimes we each kind of have our own perspective on a song that we're writing about and we're able to kind of put it together in a way that we're writing about different things, but it feels like it's about the same thing.”
The addition of rock influences feels like a natural progression rather than a departure, enhancing the emotional highs and lows of the record. Fans of brent ii’s “emily” will appreciate the continuity in sound, while newcomers will find plenty to love in the duo’s heartfelt storytelling.
brent iii is a testament to the enduring partnership between Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler. Their ability to continue to push creative boundaries while staying true to their roots is what makes this album stand out immediately. It’s a beautifully crafted full-length project that feels like a warm embrace, offering both solace and catharsis to all listeners alike.
“ I think that a healthy friendship is really, really important to being able to collaborate well together,” Cutler professes. “I think that we both have to be comfortable enough to be vulnerable with each other in our conversation and our songwriting 'cause I think making art is inherently a pretty vulnerable thing to do and it requires comfort and vulnerability to disagree or work through.” When it comes to the future of both Zucker and Cutler, the future remains open to them in many ways to further collaboration as songwriters. “We're not closing the door. We'll never say never and neither of us want to minimize this project by being like, 'Yeah, we're gonna do Brent iv.,'" shares Zucker." I don't know if I would even want to do something called that, but Chelsea and I are always gonna be collaborating and working together. It's just a matter of what form that takes on, whether it's a song for her album, for my album, for another artist, or for something that we do as something that lives in the world of brent,” Zucker affirms. “I think that it would be hard to envision us going the rest of our careers without working together in some capacity. We'll always want to be a part of each other's careers, whether it's some sort of collaboration or working on each other's individual stuff,” Cutler adds. “Life is long and who knows what will happen.”
Whether you’re a longtime fan of the brent series or just discovering Zucker and Cutler’s collaborative songwriting magic, brent iii is a must-listen—a poignant reminder of the power of connection and the beauty of vulnerability in music.