In “Madness Gladness,“ the British singer-songwriter Zachary Mason delivers an ode to the highs and lows of love, where chaos and beauty are fused together. And this track, released as his ninth single and fourteenth track in all, is the end of a long, circuitous creative odyssey that has seen him develop as an artist over three years.
First sketched out in September 2021, “Madness Gladness“ has been reborn several times. The song’s initial recording was scrapped, and a second attempt for the now-derailed album was rejected. Then, in early 2025, the version we know now was captured. And it was worth the wait. It bears a weathered soul, thick and echo-laced, and spacious with atmosphere. Zachary settles into a hazy, dreamy, cinematic soundscape, through which he invites you as if soliciting a foggy memory, leaving you unsure whether you are dreaming or living.
The fictional figure at the center of “Madness Gladness“ is a person who can’t be contained by the disorienting power of love: love is something that ravishes us with so much euphoria while sending us spinning out of control. Zachary captures a dualism with remarkable nuance, wrapping his lyrical narrative in lavish production and emotive delivery. The track is an instance of half-hallucination, half-confession, suspended animation.
Nate Barnes on drums and John Thomasson on bass add depth and seasoned precision to the soundscape with their groove-driven, no-nonsense rhythms. That lends their performances a low-key rhythm that complements Zachary’s more ethereal vocal and instrumental work elsewhere. Behind the finishing touches is the Hong Kong-based engineer Derrick Lin, who’s quickly evolved into a close associate in Zachary’s creative orbit, mixing and mastering five of his recent singles. His touch on “Madness Gladness“ is a clear one that doesn’t spoil its dreamy nature.
Zachary Mason, 27, further establishes himself as a writer to notice. Guildford-based, he tracks feels like an effort to prove to himself and the rest of us that the best songwriting doesn’t only transcend inspiration. It’s constructed through perseverance, growth, and a deep well of belief in what one is doing. With “Madness Gladness,“ Zachary Mason’s elegant whirlwind and manage, impressively, to make our world feel like home.
Connect with Zachary Mason on Instagram – @zacharymasonsmusic
