METAMORPHOSIS: An Exclusive Dive into XNDR’s Breakout EP

By: Jada Milazzo

August 23, 2024

In a music scene constantly buzzing with new sounds, XNDR has carved out a distinct moment with their latest EP, METAMORPHOSIS. He sat down with UNLABELED for an exclusive look into the making of the EP and an exploration of the meaning behind some of the new tracks. This new collection of tracks offers a fresh perspective and a deep dive into XNDR’s evolving artistry, spanning across three years. Blending R&B with pop, METAMORPHOSIS reveals a mature new sound that builds on the artist’s previous work while pushing boundaries in exciting new directions. As fans and critics alike tune in, it’s clear that this EP is more than just a set of songs; it’s a bold statement of artistic growth and a tantalizing glimpse into what the future holds for XNDR.

Ethan Alonzo, a.k.a XNDR, is no stranger to the music scene; having put out his first single in 2018, and now releasing a fully re-branded EP. XNDR talked with us about how the project itself is a metamorphosis, with its start in 2020 to being ready to release in 2024: “As an independent artist, I always loved songwriting and mixing but within the last two years I really focused on song-writing/lyricism and how it was engineered…how the vocals sound, the style choices and how to deliver the songs was really important to me”. In listening to the full EP, one can truly hear the love and devotion put into these songs; as well as the heartfelt writing about growing into one’s identity.  The tracks and EP as a whole spans across a variety of experiences and emotions that listeners are sure to relate to. XNDR gave UNLABELED an exclusive breakdown of the newly released songs. 

The EP opens with the intro track “BLESSED”, a song that reflects on gratitude and the mindset of going through struggles with family, friends, and loss but remaining hopeful and appreciative of every moment. XNDR pulls from his R&B background to create a beautiful setting/energy to bring listeners into his world, which perfectly ties into the next track “WAITING”, a song that touches on the romanticism of nightlife and the longing for a reciprocated love. The song envelops you in its smooth, soulful melodies, like a tender serenade that speaks directly to the heart with the lush/rich instrumentation to create the velvety smooth tone of a classic “slow jam”. With a focus on heartbreak and reflection of oneself, XNDR moves into a ballad, “BURN”. This song is a follow up to his single entitled “A Lover’s Hope” and touches on the situation of feeling reduced to someone else’s feelings and being fed up with a toxic relationship. In showcasing a ballad, XNDR wanted to showcase a softer, more sincere side of his songwriting that ties directly to his growth in young adult life. With the EP spanning over several years in the making, one can see/hear the growth and maturity of not only the production and sound engineering but of the song content and meaning. Burn is one of many that deals with the complicated feelings that arise from love and heartache, and expressing what you never got the chance to say. “You used me to heal..but somehow I’m here with arms wide open to you” touches on the heartbreak that comes from a situationship that meant more to one person than the other, and the turmoil of dealing with feeling resentful but caring towards someone that hurt you. These feelings have a quick turn around in “PSYCHO/CYCLE” showcasing how people bringing out the bad in you can be a vicious cycle. After being hurt and manipulated over and over can truly change one's attitude about a situation. The beat and lyricism of this track transport the listeners into the dark circle of nightlife and dancing in the club, a perfect transition to XNDR’s first latin track “MÍO”. XNDR expressed to us how “MÍO” was the missing puzzle piece to METAMORPHOSIS, being written only a month before the EP’s release. “It was an unexpected track, but something I knew I wanted to try… I’ve always been inspired by different reggaeton artists and I went to Puerto Rico in the summer and was hit with the need to make a latin track”, XNDR tells UNLABELED. “It really was as simple as calling up one of my closest friends who speaks spanish and is familiar with reggaeton, and we sat on FaceTime for over an hour just writing stuff that we were talking about and blending Spanish and English to make a dance song”. As XNDR enters adult life, and the things that go along with being a young-adult, “MÍO” is about navigating one’s identity and entering nightlife culture. In viewing the project as a whole, XNDR spoke about “MÍO” being the last song written/most recent and that song being the culmination of where he wants to go in terms of future artistry; “It’s very reflective of what I’ve been taking in through social media and music wise and it was important to me to pay image to my roots”. 

As one can see, METAMORPHOSIS takes us on a journey of understanding one’s own feelings in contrast to the world and experiences around you. From songs like “RUSH” and “WAITING” to taking back one’s power and comfortability with their identity in “PSYCHO/CYCLE” and “JEANS”, one thing is for certain, XNDR has certified his place in the R&B pop world.