Porches is Aaron Maine’s synth pop project based in New York. His most recent album Shirt is Maine’s heaviest album to-date: an unhinged coming-of-age masterpiece that nurtures discomfort instead of suppressing it. Maine changes course from his preceding soft pop records, digging deeper to his roots to reveal his version of rock n roll. “I embraced the weirder, darker, anxiety-ridden, uglier thoughts rather than in real life.” On Shirt Maine lets out raw emotions toying with his voice through auto-tune, sound exploration, and everything in between.
Shirt
Shirt is about conveying an anxious mood. Maine describes the album as excitingly uncomfortable highlighting negative feelings and emotions. He told Spin magazine “Something felt good about poking my finger into the little cut harder, making it sting. Why? Idk. It’s freeing to do so when you’re expected to do the opposite all the time.” Shirt blends grungy guitar, punchy drums, and eerie calmness to create intoxicating tension. Maine even toys with the sound of his voice with auto-tune to get the mood right.
Isolation
This is the first album Maine made outside of his own space. He worked out of a studio in a dingy windowless basement in Lower Manhattan. He likes to work and obsess, and something about his isolating setup worked well with creating the mood of the album. “Being down in the basement and being in tweaker mode all the time weirdly felt like it served the album in creating this panic state at times.” Not being surrounded by his bed, clothes, or any parts of his material reality allowed him to feel cut off in order to get extra lost. “Like a little freak den down there.”
This decision to self-isolate in a new space allowed Maine to let go of the current on-goings in his life and look back. Maine was trying to get into this headspace or inhabit an abstract, autopilot, subconscious state. His mind kept bringing him to his hometown of Pleasantville in Upstate New York, the setting for each song on the record.
“Not to sound like a hippie or whatever, but there was a lot of closing my eyes and picturing myself in these dreamlike settings, with the trees, grass, fences lakes…In a way, I feel like I was trying to shed whatever understanding or hold I have over my life now and get back to that looser, more off-the-cuff space and see what would come out when I was down there making music.”
Aaron Maine for Our Culture Magazine
Nirvana Influence
Kurt Cobain is known for his raw, unfiltered lyrics that reveal the darker, more villainous aspects of himself, often exposing the evils of humanity—both in the world and within himself. He wasn’t afraid to confront these difficult truths, refusing to edit his story to present himself as perfect or virtuous. To Maine, this honesty is the essence of true rock ‘n’ roll. He finds beauty in it and believes it’s crucial for people to face their own darker sides, to stop hiding from uncomfortable truths. By acknowledging these uglier thoughts, he hopes to encourage a deeper awareness, making us more sensitive, gentle, and mindful in our interactions with others. Porches took a similar approach.
Lyricism
Porches’ lyricism often feels like dream logic—it’s abstract yet grounded in specific, vivid details. His approach to songwriting is like found object art: things aren’t meant to be taken literally, but rather, they invite interpretation. The lyrics are literal in their details, but they’re also highly abstract, featuring distinct characters, settings, and scenarios that suggest a larger story.
Maine enjoys that this story isn’t fully defined, leaving room for the listener to interpret. He explains that he’s always been more interested in collecting memories, experiences, and dreams, then piecing them together in a way that feels whole but still allows space for the listener to project their own feelings, mood, or perspective into the song.
Maine approaches language in a less literal way, using words and sounds to create a mood and evoke feelings. In his song “Joker”, for example, when asked what ‘the pound’ represents, he explains that he’s drawn to the idea of it as a place for rejects—people who’ve caused trouble, who are unwanted or lost. ‘It’s a very charged up place,’ he says. ‘I like the idea that, for whatever reason, you end up at the pound, and there’s a sense of forgiveness in the song.’ Maine goes on to describe how he picks up his dog in the song and forgives it for running off. He sees the pound as a metaphor for feeling like you’ve messed up and forgiving yourself, or even forgiving another person. “Joker” blends pop country with a club beat, creating a unique contrast that mirrors the themes of the song.
“USA” is one of my favorite songs from Shirt. Maine wrote it on the Fourth of July in New York City. That morning, as he headed into the studio, you could slice the patriotism of the holiday in the air with a knife. The heat was intense, and hard to ignore. For some, it’s a time of celebration, but for others, it can feel terrifying to see that kind of pride in the air. Maine reflects, “I guess I was just feeling bad and thinking about that.”
He went to the studio and wrote a really intense song, exploring both sides: the proud patriot and the guilt that comes with it. He brings it back to himself, acknowledging that he deserves to feel that guilt and fear because his life has been built on violence, racism, and everything that comes with it. That’s why, at the end of the song, there’s this tongue-in-cheek line—‘you and I were meant to be.’ But it’s not meant to be beautiful or connected; it’s more of a ‘you get what you deserve’ feeling. He admits he was a little nervous about putting it on the record, but then he thought, ‘What’s the point of making art and dedicating my life to it if I can’t experiment, take risks, and try new things?’”
When asked about album takeaways, Maine said “I hope it makes [listeners] wanna start a band or something. I hope they just take away having a whacked out experience listening to it, run it back, and are inspired to make more music or hangout with friends. So whatever vision, if you are inclined to paint, write, skateboard or something, you’re inspired to also create something”.
The Show!
Porches’ live performance at Exit/In was wild and intimate. Aaron gave a theatrical, larger-than-life performance—he’s literally so tall—and he threw himself into the music, dancing and moving with every lyric. It felt like a cathartic release, an unmasking of the things we hide behind just to get by, and an embrace of life’s aches and struggles. I was right at the front, so close that he kept stepping on the railing just inches from my face. My favorite moment was when he performed ‘Music.’ It’s a slower, more dramatic track that really stood out.
Maine’s music is refreshing because it is unique and deeply meaningful to his present day life. In a time where music listeners are craving something unique, give Porches a listen here.
References: Our Culture, Spin Magazine, Sounds of Life, Clash
BOOGIE WITH EMMA 