With “What If?”, UK artist, songwriter, and producer Heron continues the extraordinary run of singles leading toward his album Underground Sky – a project unfolding one track at a time through 2025. Each release has explored a different emotional and sonic landscape, but “What If?” feels like its still point. A pause for reflection that bridges fragility and creative renewal.

The song opens with sparse piano. There’s no preamble, just Heron’s familiar stunner of a voice and keys in a quiet room, captured so closely you can hear the breath between lines. As the piece unfolds, layers of unfold, a bit like ripples. A minimalist framework gradually widening into something cinematic.

Sonically, “What If?” balances grounded warmth and spectral vastness. It carries the melodic grace of Rufus Wainwright and the layered ambition of Brian Wilson’s Pet Sounds, yet remains unmistakably Heron – modern, introspective, and handmade. The mix builds toward a subtle crescendo before returning to the intimacy of its beginning, mirroring the lyrical theme: the circular rhythm of questioning, learning, and returning to oneself.

“I hope that it balances optimism with unease, creating space for reflection on life, reality, and the unseen”

Lyrically, the song wrestles with uncertainty in a way that feels both philosophical and deeply human. Lines like “What if everything you were taught wasn’t what you thought?” hit at the core of generational doubt – the moment we begin to see inherited truths unravel. But Heron avoids cynicism; the questions feel a bit more like invitations rather than verdicts. Through imagery of birth, flight, and rediscovery, he maps a cycle of innocence, loss, and awakening. It’s a meditation on growing older without losing curiosity – a reminder that doubt and wonder can coexist.

That balance between faith and uncertainty defines Heron’s songwriting. His melodies hold space for both light and shadow, optimism and unease. The lush harmonies that rise midway through the track sound almost like answers forming, but before they settle, they dissolve again into open space. Even the chord progressions refuse closure, hovering just out of reach. The result is emotionally unresolved in the most satisfying way – a song that asks questions instead of offering comfort.

From a production standpoint, “What If?” showcases the full strength of Heron’s DIY ethos. Everything – writing, performance, mixing, artwork – was done in his home studio. Yet there’s nothing small about the sound. The production is genuinely brilliant, letting the emotional weight land without artifice.

Within the Underground Sky project, “What If?” provides a pause for introspection. Earlier singles like “Transcendental Meditation” and “Read My Mind” leaned into genre-blending and sonic experimentation. This track pulls inward – less about innovation, more about truth. The pacing mirrors Heron’s creative process: slow, searching, quietly radical. His approach rejects the hyper-processed norm of modern pop, instead finding depth in simplicity and patience.

Visually, Heron extends the song’s atmosphere into film. The self-directed video uses natural imagery – skies, motion, stillness – to mirror the song’s meditation on uncertainty and renewal. It’s a perfect extension of his style, blurring the boundary between music and art.

In many ways, “What If?” mirrors Heron’s artistic journey. From early acclaim in the 2000s – The Sunday Times, NME, and Mojo all hailed his early work – to years of silence and self-reinvention, his career feels defined by curiosity and persistence. After stepping away from major labels, he rebuilt from the ground up, creating through his Cracked Analogue imprint. This song embodies that rebirth: questioning the world, and still creating beauty within it.

Ultimately, “What If?” is one of our favourite introspective alt-pop bangers of the year. Elegant, spacious, and deeply human, Heron delivers one of his most vulnerable and complete works to date. A haunting meditation on how questioning can become its own form of faith.

thank u for making this heron 🌙