With “Set Me Free,” the lead single from his EP Imperfections, Jack Horton offers a piano-driven confessional that is both deeply personal and universally resonant. Anchored in themes of growth through grief and strength through surrender, this burning ballad marks a turning point not only in Horton’s life but in his songwriting voce – one that trades polish for poignancy and fear for grace.

At the heart of “Set Me Free” is Horton’s piano, expressive, measured, and melodic. The production is spacious and understated, allowing the vulnerability of the lyric to rise without interference. There are no studio tricks here – only the emotional weight of the keys, soft ambient textures, and the voice of someone who has lived every words.

Subtle string arrangements and restrained percussion enter gradually, enhancing the the catharsis without overwhelming it. It’s the kind of production that knows when to speak and when to be silent – much like the lesson in the song itself.

“I’m grateful for my divorce,” Horton confesses in the EP press release – and you can feel that complex gratitude woven into every line of “Set Me Free.” This is not a break-up song in the traditional sense. It’s a love song in the most evolved form: a recognition that letting og can be the final act of love.

The lines reveal the quiet dignity of someone owning their part in the pain, while still distilling the emotional thesis into a powerful refrain. Horton avoids bitterness or blame – instead, he leans into empathy, showing that true resolution comes not from winning, but from releasing.

Horton’s vocal tone is warm, unadorned, and lived-in – the sound of someone who’s had to speak through tears and come out strong. There’s a hushed intimacy in his delivery, more reminiscent of singer-songwriters like David Gray or Jackson Browne than today’s radio-ready pop-country.

His phrasing feels deliberate, often lingering on emotional peaks like a breath caught in the throat. It’s that restrain that gives the performance its emotional power – nothing is over-sung, but everything is felt.

Jack Horton is not a typical breakout artist. His unconventional path – from Oregon to Tokyo, from law school to government to tech, and finally back to the piano – informs every noter of his music with a sense of earned perspective. “Set Me Free” is a songwriter’s song, forged in life’s trenches and polished not by industry convention but by honesty.

As the opener to Imperfections, “Set Me Free” sets the tone for a project that values emotional truth over genre expectation. Horton draws from pop-country, soft rock, and classic singer-songwriter traditions, but he avoids mimicry. His classically trained piano sensibilities give the song both gravitas and gentleness.

“Set Me Free” is the sound of a heart breaking open to let the light in. It’s about how we hold on too long, and how we find ourselves in the letting go. In Horton’s hands, that story becomes a song – one that aches without bitterness, and heals without hurry.

For fans of James Taylor, Jeff Buckley, Sara Bareilles, or Jim Crose (whom Horton also honors later in the EP), this is a track that rewards quiet attention and emotional openness. With “Set Me Free,” Jack Horton invites us to sit down, feel deeply, and perhaps – let go a little, too.