Not Just a Song, a Journal Entry: Ashton York’s "Two Chords" Will Hit You, Where It Hurts

With nothing more than a guitar, his voice, and the weight of memory, Ashton York turns quiet reflection into something quietly unforgettable for listeners.

Ashton York - 2025 - Photo Courtesy of @zacharyy.sun — **Ashton York - 2025 -** **Photo Courtesy** of **@zacharyy.sun**

Ashton York’s just released the song Two Chords in a way that it doesn’t ask for attention. It earns it. With an open hand and an open wound, York delivers something so stripped down and inward-facing, it feels less like a song and more like a journal entry left on a nightstand.

The track closes out Eight Seven Five, his upcoming EP named after named after his home address in San Francisco. That choice sets the tone. This isn’t a statement piece. It’s a quiet confession.

You can feel the weight of memory in the corners of each line. There’s no mask here, the arrangement is stripped down to an acoustic guitar and York's voice, that sounds more as a confession, backing vocals do add layers, but it does sound like just someone telling the truth softly, maybe just loud enough for the both of you to hear.

From the first verse, the lyrics feel lived-in. He doesn’t need a lot. A ride or die, a guitar, a bike ride to Sausalito, a memory tucked away in Tahoe. But it’s not all nostalgia.

There’s guilt too. There’s grief. “When my father died, she consoled me, but I left her high and dry.” The story unfolds without drama. It just breathes, and hurts, and it does accept it.

Then he gives us the chorus. “Two chords tonight, that’s all I’m feeling.” It’s not just about the music. It’s about his emotional range in that moment. There’s beauty in how simple it all is. A song about not having the energy to make something big, yet somehow creating something deeply moving anyway.

In the second half, the honesty turns sharper. He admits he wants the world. He wants to play for crowds, to reach for stars, to reclaim the parts of himself buried under life and time.

That lyric, “I think I'm grieving a side of me I never lost,” lands hard.

It captures something most people feel, but never have the courage to say. That ache for an unlived version of ourselves.

York’s delivery matches the writing. There’s nothing flashy. The song doesn’t need more than it has, deep lyrical and musical meaning. The arrangement leaves space for the words to echo. And he’s not hiding behind production tricks. He’s just there. Present. Real. You can hear the room around him.

There’s something meta about the whole thing. Singing about singing. Writing about writing. It could feel clever or self-conscious in another artist’s hands, but not here. York isn’t trying to impress anyone. He’s just trying to feel something, and maybe help someone else feel it too.

Two Chords is not your designed party radio-like song. It’s designed for late nights and early morning, where there's only the weight of your life meeting you as an ol' friend.

For those quiet moments when the ceiling is your only limit. It’s a perfect closer for the EP because it leaves you with nothing wrapped up. No final answer. Just a soft truth, humming in your chest and in your mind.

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