Alex Wellkers’ Reach the Stars is not just an album—it’s an odyssey of sound, a meticulously orchestrated constellation of stories and emotions that shimmer in the quiet spaces of your heart. From the gentle harp notes in “We Knew It All” to the soaring, melancholic farewell of “Au Revoir,” this album stretches across genres and languages with the grace of a cinematic journey, stitched together by a singular artistic vision.
At its core, Reach the Stars feels like a love letter to human vulnerability. There’s something unmistakably tender in the way Wellkers handles composition—no note is wasted, no lyric superficial. The album opens with “We Knew It All,” a hauntingly beautiful track grounded by cello and harp, swelling slowly into a shimmering folk-pop ballad. The layering here—harp by Mercedes Bralo, cello by Noelia Diaz, acoustic guitars by Adam Ward—is delicate yet expansive, and sets the tone for the sonic richness that follows.
“Give Me the Keys” shifts gears into a more grounded, rhythm-forward territory. The interplay of acoustic drums by Ivan Korniienko and strings by Julia Stein and Mariia Vakhnenko makes this track feel like a walk through a twilight city—dreamy but urgent, nostalgic but forward-facing. And then comes “See Me There,” an effortlessly melodic tune touched by tenor sax and Phil Gardiner’s sensitive piano playing. It’s here that the album really begins to glow with emotional clarity. Vocals are raw, unpolished in the best way, like he’s confiding secrets rather than performing.
“Desert Island” might be the crown jewel of the collection. Clocking in at over four minutes, it builds slowly, gathering textures like waves on sand. Harp, saxophone, layered drums, and atmospheric keys conjure isolation and longing with cinematic elegance. The outro harp—again by Bralo—is ghostly, like the sound of memory itself. If this track doesn’t leave a mark, check your pulse.
Just when you think you’ve grasped the album’s sonic shape, “Alles Nicht So Schlimm” pulls you into a German-language swirl of warmth and resignation, like a rainy-day hug. There’s a theatrical, almost cabaret-like tone to it, yet it never feels out of place. In fact, it opens the door for the trilingual surprises that follow. “Tu Es Ici,” sung in French, drapes the listener in rich saxophone layers and featherlight flute by Catherine Dury—it’s like floating above Paris at dusk.
By the time we reach “What Are You Searching For,” the album feels like it’s speaking directly to the listener, not just musically but philosophically. It asks without answering, letting the music become the mirror. “Now the Page’s Been Turned” and “Au Revoir” then bring the curtain down with aching finality. The former is minimalistic—just voice and guitar—while the latter is a sprawling, six-minute farewell that touches on every motif that came before.
What makes Reach the Stars remarkable is its collaborative heart. While Wellkers is the mastermind behind the lyrics, vocals, and instrumentation, he invites a symphony of global talent to breathe life into each track. From Dima Faustov’s soulful sax to Noelia Diaz’s plaintive cello, this is a communal triumph dressed in the intimacy of a singer-songwriter record.Ultimately, Reach the Stars doesn’t just ask us to reach for the stars—it takes us there, one story, one note at a time. It’s a stargazer’s map drawn from emotion, language, and layered instrumentation—equal parts heady, humble, and human.