_{By Joseph Hawkins}

Since his EP Orange Avenue was released in 2017, Ben Reneer has consistently written and released music that lives up to the name he established for himself with that brilliant debut. Self-produced and perfectly balanced between folk and singer-songwriter, his music tackles the hard emotions we each experience in our darkest moments — fear, loss, and regret. As his music continues to evolve, Reneer seeks to maintain a sense of space and simplicity characteristic of his art while innovating upon that foundation with new sounds and instrumentation that excite him.

As both an artist and a human, Reneer is truly poetic. Far from self-aggrandizing, however, Reneer’s humility shows in his willingness to live in a seemingly constant state of self-reflection. Every time he and I chat, there’s a steady stream of his observations and realizations about himself and his artistry — everything from pondering why so much of his music is full of questions, to finding common threads through his work. But even then, he’s never opposed to others interpreting his art differently than he does.

“The point of my music – as I see it – is not to be about me, but rather to let other people see themselves in my work,” he says. “Finding personal meaning in someone else’s art is what makes art transcendent. It becomes something more than just a product of the artist.”

Much of his music features religious and other symbolism, including his latest single, “Cross.” Visually detailed and sonically harrowing, it details the impending collapse of a relationship while on a road trip through the Midwest.

When asked about the story behind the song’s name, Reneer – at the risk of appearing blasphemous – explains it as his way of adopting the Christian religious symbol to his life. Far from diminishing the significance of the cross, he intends to respectfully draw parallels with this experience. Reneer hopes that regardless of others’ beliefs and backgrounds, they will be open to seeing the beauty of such symbolism.

“I think there’s great value in being open to embracing symbolism and meaning from religion even if you don’t believe,” he says. “There’s so much deep wisdom and beauty in the world’s religious traditions, but we dismiss because it’s not part of our native culture. I’m trying to not do that anymore.”

Reneer describes the purpose of his work as trying to convey that beauty. Simply put, he’s making the world more beautiful. “Cross,” the first single from Reneer’s next album, dropped on September 22. According to Reneer, this forthcoming album is a continuation of the story found on his last record, My Hands Were Stuck In My Pockets. This story contains themes of looking back at the end of relationships and asking hard questions.

Reflecting, asking hard questions, making the world more beautiful – these are all noble aims. Most importantly, though, Reneer is trying to “fight the forces of evil, one sad song at a time.” That’s what his Instagram bio says, at least.

“Initially I meant it facetiously,” he laughs when asked about his bio. “It sounds kind of funny. But I’ve heard from people who say they react to my music in a spiritual/existential/healing kind of way. And that’s caused me to take that intention of fighting evil more seriously. Maybe my music can add some moral goodness to the world.”

Make sure to follow Ben Reneer on Instagram, and stream his new song “Cross” below.