Dominic Fike
Dominic Fike is a legdend. But you probably already know that. His burst onto the indie scene as a ex-con in 2018 was an entrance not many have made before. Since, he has risen to the level of an international superstar - a major feat for someone who does not conform to mainstream pop norms - inside or out of the studio. It was clear from the beginning that Fike had an edge for melodies. His voice and his guitar dance together, as if an extension of one another. Something about his sound is addictive. And while I think there is something valuable in every single one of his records, only his debut EP Don’t Forget Me, Demos (2018) and first LP What Could Possibly Go Wrong? (2020) are featured here. Sunburn (2023) and 14 minutes (2024) were both not bad records and each featured some sick tracks. That being said, they just didn’t keep my interest like Dom’s previous work did. His latest mixtape, Rocket (2025) however, sparked something in me. As I wrote about on News & Reviews, this recent mixtape was the closest thing we’ve got to Dom’s OG sound in a very long time. It was so very refreshing and well produced and I reccomend it vehemently. Why isn’t it here, you wonder? While good, it was no longer original. Fike’s first two works were so fresh. No one had sounded like him before. Not only, these two works really stuck with me because of where I was in life at the time. His music simply hits different when you are an angsty, moody West Coast pre-teen trying to figure things out. Not even Rocket couldn’t recreate that feeling.
Don’t Forget About Me, Demos (2018)
Demos, I have never forgotten about you. Technically an EP, I'm still going to include it here for how remarkable and memorable these songs were for me. Dominic Fike’s guitar and catchy choruses got me through some of the lonliest days of my adolescence. To have such awesome production so early in a musical career is absolutely ridiculous. His vocal range is as massive as it is painful. I have never heard a voice compliment guitar the way his voice does. Or maybe the strings compliment his voice? Who knows. It's clear the notes guide him. Everything feels intuitive. I was only 12 when I was streaming the EP, but I remember it sounding like no indie I had really heard before. I think the world knows this is true now, too. 3 Nights now has over a BILLION Spotify streams. Immense.
What Could Possibly Go Wrong? (2020)
I remember being especially excited for this record when it came out. I had been a loyal fan since Don’t Forget About Me, Demos and I was really excited for what he was gonna do next. If Don’t Forget About Me, Demos was Fike fucking around as a young ex-convict (lmfao) and finding his sound, then What Could Possibly Go Wrong? was the mastery and mass- production of this sound in his first full- length record (and Sunburn was the (somewhat dissapointing) deconstruction and reconfiguring of this sound for the purpose of creating something less… full. Oh well. Anyways, I do think this record, even though it lacked the novelty of the 2018 EP, was the artistic peak of Fike’s career in terms of both songwriting and production. It's strength is in the dynamics of the album. You simply cannot say that the tracks all the same. One track is regret, another is a mania episode, another is a silly joke. I love it.
