What is home, now that you’ve left it? Is it mom’s cookies, or is it family fights? Is it good times with friends, or is it that person you had no choice but to leave behind? At some point, you’ve gotta ask yourself: is home the bitter or the sweet? Either way, you know that home is a place you can’t return, no matter how hard you try. GRDN’s debut album, If It’s Near, tries to go home only to find that no one really knows what that means in the first place. Based in memories, struggles, and nostalgia, If It’s Near yearns for a true sense of home, winding through the asymmetry of comfort and discontent, resolving in the understanding that life is about moving forward. Musical time lapses bring you back to your childhood kitchen. Or the sometimes still-fresh heartbreak from your high school crush. Or the memories of illicit nights out, hoping against hope that those nights would never end. If It’s Near drips with nostalgia for home but understands that it’s gone. GRDN (/ˈɡärd(ə)n/) is a musical endeavor between Seattle-based singer/songwriter Patrick O’Neill and Nashville-based producer and mix engineer Josh Bonanno. The pair’s unique blend of organic, human textures, thick lush vocals, and open-ended songwriting create an atmosphere that feels safe, secure, and trusted.