While I’m Distracted

Released in 2025 via Albert’s Favourites, While I’m Distracted arrives as a debut that feels anything but tentative. After a run of EPs that established his voice, Arjuna Oakes delivers a full-length statement that is expansive in scope yet deeply personal in tone.

Spanning 16 tracks and featuring 18 musicians, the album moves with cinematic intent. Oakes draws from soul and jazz as its foundation, but the edges are softened and stretched by touches of global folk, electronica and modern classical composition. The result is a record that resists easy categorisation, not through ambition alone, but through careful, considered execution.

At its core, While I’m Distracted is a reflection on identity and emotional honesty. Oakes leans into vulnerability, exploring themes of depression, displacement, social pressure and the search for meaning without forcing resolution. His songwriting favours questions over answers, allowing each track to unfold with a sense of openness.

Musically, the album is rich without feeling crowded. Piano and voice anchor much of the material, while strings, horns and woodwinds are introduced with precision. Contributions from flute, saxophone, clarinet and a full string section give the record its depth, but they are always in service of the song rather than spectacle.

There is a sense of movement throughout. Tracks shift between intimate passages and fuller, more dynamic arrangements, creating a flow that mirrors the emotional landscape Oakes is navigating. The production reflects this balance, detailed yet restrained, allowing space for both clarity and atmosphere.

What stands out most is the cohesion. Despite its scale, the album never feels fragmented. Oakes’ presence, both as a performer and composer, ties everything together, giving the record a clear identity even as it explores different sonic territories.

While I’m Distracted is a debut that understands the weight of the format. It does not rush to define itself, instead inviting the listener into a world that reveals itself gradually. Thoughtful, expressive and quietly ambitious, it marks the arrival of an artist with a distinct and fully formed voice.