"...Spaltro focusses on the dualities that make us human, encouraging the celebration of both fear and love: internally and externally, before and after. This is reflected in the music frequently characterized by the contrast between subtlety and power.  The irresistibly catchy "Vena Cava" switches between verses of acoustic restraint and a snarly guitar-heavy chorus. Spaltro's uniquely clear and pure vocal tone elevates these songs even beyond the accomplished songwriting, a sonic union between bright melody and inventive musical layering...."
- AESTHETICA, the art and cultural magazine, UK

"..The second LP by Aly Spaltro is proof that the experiential gap between your teens and twenties is vast. Reflection, plus improved compositional skills has given perspective to her songs without softening their visceral impact. On 'After' she slaloms around fizzy grunge punk,bittersweet country pop and stirring alt.folk balladry; lyrically Spaltro switches between the strikingly poetic and the sweetly prosaic, but is always compelling..."
- UNCUT, UK

In between tours, Spaltro returned home, focusing with laser-like intent on writing, arranging, and demoing the songs on After. These new works - which found Spaltro co-producing with her Ripely Pine partner Nadim Issa at his Brooklyn studio, Let 'Em In - are sonically vibrant, with an assertive use of grit and brightness. Thematically, they provide direct insight into Spaltro’s rumination on mortality, family, friendships, and leaving home.

There are many songs on After that explore themes of a much larger scale. In “Heretic” Spaltro sings of a childhood UFO sighting in Arizona. In “Batter” she dies in a plane crash, while in “Spat Out Spit” she questions whether she was even born at all. Alternatively, in “Billions of Eyes” Spaltro can "only see into her suitcase," her mind simultaneously present and wandering as she "gnaws [her] way back home." The tender and sparse “Ten” delves into her mother’s childhood diary, giving the listener a clear view throughout into some of Spaltro's warmest memories of her loved ones. Ripely Pine was marked by an undeniable passion and confidence, but where it sometimes lacked in personal narrative and directness is where After shines. The last line on After encompasses the self-assurance of the work as a whole, stating "I know where I come from." This theme is a constant throughout After, as Spaltro seeks to allow the listener to move in closer than ever before, to reflect on the past with grace, and envision the future with fervor. Spaltro invites us to contemplate the dualities that make us human, encouraging the celebration of both fear and love: internally and externally, before and after.

A1/01. Vena Cava - (03:52)
A2/02. Billions O Eyes - (05:10) 
A3/03. Violet Clementine - (04:44)
B1/04. Heretic - (04:13)
B2/05. Sunday Shoes - (05:18)
B3/06. Spat Out Spit - (04:29) 
C1/07. Penny Licks - (05:10)
C2/08. Dear Arkansas Daughter - (05:53)
C3/09. Milk Duds - (03:09)
D1/10. Ten - (04:45)
D2/11. Batter - (02:50)
D3/12. Atlas - (06:04)

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