“The Tunnel + the Light” was created during the most difficult period of Jordan Corey’s life: the performer and songwriter was caring for her mother, who had been given a terrible diagnosis – cancer. In such cases, one typically faces a difficult choice: either career and rapid ascent to forget about problems, or selfless service to a dear person.

But Jordan Corey chose the most difficult, third path. She selflessly cared for her mother, and in moments of respite actively created tracks filled with personal experiences about the entire situation. For her, creativity became a kind of salvation through which she preserved both her soul and her sanity in such a difficult life moment. This was reflected in her work: all tracks on “The Tunnel + the Light” constitute a kind of roadmap from melancholy, spiritual pain and despair to acceptance of the situation. Jordan Corey managed to create an interesting mixture in the album, harmoniously combining love and respect for her former self, who didn’t even suspect all the difficulties that would fall upon her shoulders, and delight towards her current self, who managed to endure, gaining new spiritual strength to withstand all hardships in the future.

“The Tunnel + the Light” rejects the familiar trauma narratives we know. Here you won’t find formulaic triumphant overcoming, no moment when everything falls into place and gains meaning. Instead, Corey offers a tangled, nonlinear process of learning to live with the unbearable. She documents the strange intimacy of caring for loved ones, how crisis can make you both more vulnerable and more resilient.

The real achievement here lies in the temporal aspect. Corey manages to exist in several time frames simultaneously – mourning who she was before this, whilst simultaneously admiring who she has become. It’s like watching someone write their own mythology in real time, creating meaning not through grand gestures, but through the accumulation of small acts of witness and endurance.

Indeed, “The Tunnel + the Light” seems almost shocking in its sincere engagement with real stakes. This is what it sounds like when someone uses art as a tool to remain human in impossible circumstances.

“Friend Like Me” opens the album, and literally from the first seconds strikes with the light and ease of melody. The track immediately creates the atmosphere of a magical world where it’s safe and there are no problems. And one really doesn’t want to return from it to harsh reality. Jordan Corey’s vocals only amplify the energy of the melody, emphasising its positive qualities. And after it ends, one becomes very sad: after all, the magic has ended, and one would so like it to last a little longer.

But the track “Do the Thing” delights with an energetic melody that like a strong wind “blows away” that lyrical and somewhat sad state after listening to the first track. Jordan creates the illusion of a fast car ride along a night motorway towards adventures. R&B motifs harmoniously interweave with indie electronics, reinforcing each other. Personally, this track helped me greatly to “charge up” with energy for solving a large number of issues.

Do pay attention to “One“. The smooth and gentle rhythm attracts attention, forces one to stop in daily hustle and bustle and simply immerse oneself in the melody to cleanse consciousness. This is akin to meditation, where Jordan Corey with her tender vocals unobtrusively guides her listener towards a brighter state, helping to cope with spiritual pain and disappointments.

But the track “Feel Me” from the first seconds attracts with a mysterious melody that gradually gives way to tender vocals. In this track, the vocals play the leading role, the melody is just background emphasising Jordan Corey’s voice. And it must be noted – this is done correctly! She managed with her voice alone to create unique modulations: first everything gentle, then full of energy and even defiance. Thereby she tells what path she travelled to become who she is now.

“Canadian Rockies (Interlude)” is contradictory. On one hand, from the first seconds one hears spiritual pain that literally turns one inside out. But on the other hand – there are notes of mystery, tenderness. And all this harmoniously combines! Particularly worth noting is the track’s rhythm: it’s moderately slow. At the same time, precisely such rhythm helps to calm down and fully enjoy such an original combination of emotions invested in it, without being distracted by anything else.

In “The Story”, the main role is given to Jordan Corey’s vocals. And there’s much of interest here. Firstly, her vocals set a lyrical mood, as with love ballads. Secondly, there’s no preliminary transition to a sharper and faster rhythm in the song’s performance. The transition is executed so smoothly and naturally that one can only admire Jordan Corey’s vocal mastery. Thirdly, the use of “swings“, that is, a return to quiet and tender vocals, then to a more dynamic and fast version. Complete delight!

“Earthbound” concludes the album. The song is an enigma. And it creates illusions of entering another world where magical beings speak with the listener. Or one could even say that other entities have come to the listener to sing to them. The melody is smooth and tender, with small insertions of guitar arpeggios in an Eastern manner, leading the listener’s consciousness to unknown distances, relaxing. Such a conclusion to the album is rather original, but very interesting, as it makes clear: Jordan Corey can create many more interesting musical worlds.

Jordan Corey understands something fundamental about intimacy that most artists spend entire careers trying to figure out. “The Tunnel + the Light” operates in that rare space where vulnerability becomes a form of quiet rebellion. It’s designed for those moments when you need to disappear into creative work but want company in the process. For late-night conversations that meander between confession and philosophy. For the kind of romantic evening that feels stolen from ordinary time—when you’re trying to build something beautiful with another person whilst the world continues its relentless forward motion outside your door.

This is functional art in the best sense: music that improves the texture of daily existence. Jordan Corey has created an album that grows more essential with repeated listening, revealing new layers of meaning as your own circumstances shift and change. “The Tunnel + the Light” insists on slower rhythms, deeper engagements. It’s built for the long haul—the kind of album that will still be teaching you things about yourself years from now. Recommended!

*This review was made possible by SubmitHub