Not All the Beautiful Things is the debut studio album by Australian musical project What So Not, which is the performing name of DJ and producer, Chris Emerson. It was released on 9 March 2018 through Counter Records and Sweat It Out. What So Not began work on the album after completing a six-year long global tour, which had left him unable to commit fully to working on a studio album. His frequent travels influenced the sound of many of the album's tracks, including "Beautiful" and "Us". What So Not chose the record's title because the "simple pleasures" of life are ignored by people who focus only on their grandiose ideas.
The record contains twelve songs, all featuring production collaborations and performances with a range of artists: Toto, Skrillex, Dyro, Daniel Johns and San Holo. Its songwriting was managed by a list of co-writers, inclusive of Anna Lunoe, Off Bloom and Ryan McMahon of Captain Cuts. The tracks comprise What So Not's signature future bass and trap sounds, while experimenting with other electronic music genres including hip hop, dubstep, and house.
It received generally positive reviews from music critics, who praised the featured guests and production quality. The record includes three singles — "Be Ok Again" with Daniel Johns in November 2017, "Stuck in Orbit" with Buoy in January 2018, and "Beautiful" with Winona Oak in February 2018. In support of the album, What So Not embarked on an international tour named the Beautiful Things World Tour which lasted from January to May 2018. It charted in the United States (Dance/Electronic Albums) and Australia (ARIA), peaking at number eight and fourteen respectively.
Background and development
Not All the Beautiful Things was issued by Australian electronic music project, What So Not, also known as Emoh Instead. He had previously released four extended plays (EPs) under his project name. Three of these were co-produced with Australian artist Flume who left the project in February 2015, which at that time What So Not had carried the majority of the project by performing on his own. After touring extensively, What So Not returned to Sydney in 2017 hoping to complete work on a studio-length album, which ultimately became Not All the Beautiful Things. He had been unable to do so while on the move, saying: "I had a few test runs with EPs and things, particularly with Divide and Conquer, but I don't think I could have really done an album before this point, because I ended up on tour for almost six years."
What So Not's experiences while performing influenced several of the album's songs. For example, he said the song "Beautiful" was created while he was backpacking and camping in Nicaragua. He had also written multiple tracks in a Nicaraguan songwriting workshop organised by Neon Gold Records. What So Not took on the role of creative director for the first time in his career on Not All the Beautiful Things. This gave him control over the production, songwriting, film scoring and its direction. He felt this led to a "cohesive narrative" across all creative aspects of the project. It was recorded from 2015 to 2018, in between touring.
What So Not said the record's title was a "tribute to the things we lose along the way when we're striving for things", in particular when individuals focus on "all these grand goals" and "forget everything that's in front of them." He also said the title encompasses the entire narrative of the album and encapsulates his own dramatic endings to personal relationships. The producer said while working on the album he avoided "putting any pressure on [himself]" in the onset and simply tried to have it completed by a certain point. He focused on the record's songwriting and toplining (lyrical writing over a pre-made track). Originally, as many as 100 song demos were made for it, but only 12 tracks that fit the artist's narrative were used. What So Not described its songs as "brutally honest and raw", representing his attempts to "[dive] into the deep end with things [he had] maybe never tried before."
Not All the Beautiful Things includes collaborations with other artists the producer describes as people that he has admired and befriended across the years. He said that the collaboration with Daniel Johns occurred during a time when they "randomly crossed paths and hit it off". The collaboration with Toto surprised him as the band had not previously worked with a dance music producer. They reportedly held jam sessions where What So Not would play some chords, a riff, or a drum beat and the band would "riff over the top and do a call and response thing."