Track Of The Day: Smoothboi Ezra – ‘Stuck’

A tender, lo-fi offering that explores the struggle of feeling emotionally stunted or unable to communicate in an unsteady relationship, Irish multi-instrumentalist & producer Smoothboi Ezra has shared their latest single ‘Stuck’. Taken from their upcoming EP of the same name, which is set for release on 11th June, the track is a poignant meditation on the reluctance we encounter when facing the end of our romantic involvement with someone.

“‘Stuck’ is a song about being in a relationship with someone you care a lot about but you know it’s not going to work out,” Ezra explains “It’s an unsaid mutual agreement that you can feel the relationship ending but you’re both waiting on the other person to end it.” Ezra balances these emotional tensions via soft vocals, raw lyricism and gently plucked guitar strings.

As a gender non-conforming artist who is also on the autism spectrum, Ezra offers a different perspective on heartbreak and emotional intelligence, creating captivating, bittersweet soundscapes to contemplate the struggles of everyday life to. At the age of just 19, their talent for writing charming songs about personal growth is humbling and highly impressive.

Watch the video for ‘Stuck’ below.

Follow Smoothboi Ezra on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Leon McCulloughl

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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WATCH: Penelope Trappes – ‘Fur & Feather’

Inspired by Celtic mythology, the on-going journey towards self-autonomy and a sense of inner peace, Australian-born Brighton-based artist Penelope Trappes has shared her latest single ‘Fur & Feather’. Taken from her upcoming album Penelope Three, which is set for release on 28th May via Houndstooth, the track is a deeply soothing listen led by tentative keys and Trappes’ beguiling vocals.

“I wrote ‘Fur & Feather’ after becoming inspired by the Celtic tale of The Selkie, which is about ‘homing’ – returning to a sense of self,” Trappes explains about the track. “I found this treasure within the well-known book Women Who Run With Wolves by Dr. Clarissa Pinkes Estés. In preparation for the inevitable day that my sole daughter would leave home after 18 years, I carried a great sense of bittersweet loss in my heart. The Selkie reminded me of how I always knew the time would come when I’d be physically and emotionally alone and because of this I have always kept my own identity intact.”

Accompanied by a beautifully shot self-directed video in collaboration with art collective Agnes Haus, ‘Fur & Feather’ sees Trappes find contentment in a spiritual and physical sense, exploring lush woodlands as her calm vocals act like a deep exhale, dispersing her fears of loneliness and reassuring herself that the inevitability of change can be embraced and enjoyed with the right mindset.

Watch the video for ‘Fur & Feather’ below.

Follow Penelope Trappes on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook

Photo Credit: Agnes Haus

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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EP: Softcult – ‘Year Of The Rat’

A culmination of their thoughts on and experiences of sexism, misogyny and objectification, twin sisters Phoenix and Mercedes Arn Horn aka Softcult have crafted a bittersweet collection of lush, grunge-infused songs on their debut EP, Year Of The Rat. Pushing through pain and reflecting on their hard earned emotional resilience, the Canadian duo have written an ultra-cool manifesto of resistance designed to help relieve the pressures that come with existing in a patriarchal world.

Informed by their love of 90s guitar bands like Bikini Kill and My Bloody Valentine, as well as the bubble-gum grunge of Beabadoobee and Soccer Mommy, Softcult blend atmospheric guitars, energetic percussion and hazy vocals to create their softly antagonistic sounds. Working from their home studio for most of 2020, Phoenix and Mercedes were able to take stock of what they really wanted to achieve under their new moniker and Year Of The Rat is a mature offering that highlights the duo’s instincts for creating heady soundscapes that soothe the sting of a painful past.

“It might seem like we’re just super angry but it comes from a place of wanting to make positive change, which always starts with a conversation,” explains guitarist & vocalist Mercedes. This anger and empathy manifests itself in different ways throughout the EP, which kicks off with the melodic ‘Another Bish’. The duo find catharsis amidst their swirling riffs and frantic beats, arriving at the humbling realisation that even though you can’t always change someone else’s perception of you, you can refuse to be “tamed” by their reductive views.

The melancholic ‘Gloomy Girl’ provides listeners with a glimpse behind the veil of depression. It’s a tentative musing on the ominous feeling that you’re “wasting away” whilst going through a period of poor mental health. ‘Take It Off’ aches with a subdued anger that’s directed at catcallers, but it also doubles up as a care-free dismissal of ridiculous trophy wife standards. The pair continue to shrug off the emotional labour that’s routinely pushed onto women’s shoulder on the shimmering, restless ‘Young Forever’, before closing the EP with the cutting, yet tender sounds of ‘Bird Song’.

Fuelled by their desire to instigate change in their own circles and further afield, the Softcult blend observational lyrics, smooth vocals and atmospheric riffs together on Year Of The Rat to punctuate their personal statement against injustice and provide listeners with a brooding, polished, unexpectedly light listen.

 

Follow Softcult on Spotify, Instagram, Facebook & Twitter

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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LISTEN: Sans Soucis – ‘I’m On’

An uplifting blend of lush vocals, warm synth textures and smooth beats that radiate with a new found artistic confidence, songwriter & producer Sans Soucis has shared her latest single ‘I’m On’. Released via AWAL in collaboration with The Young Guns Network and co-produced by Cid Rim, the track is a genre-bending reflection on the artist’s own experiences of recovering from an extended period of depression, finding joy and freedom when she was able to re-connect with herself.

“When I wrote this song, I wanted to express the fact that I am honestly ‘on’, like how people turn on a TV. I am awake,” Sans Soucis explains. “I’m ready to experience the world and enjoy my career path. A big part of my depression was that I felt less able to enjoy music, but after healing, I finally feel alive. My artist name is a nickname given by my Congolese family meaning ‘care-free’. The irony is that, for a time, I was making music as Sans Soucis, but I wasn’t really feeling like Sans Soucis. Now I am, and this song came to me in a flash; I needed to sing my heart out and put together all these harmonies, to express the joyousness and happiness I was feeling.”

Through her considered lyrics, exquisite vocal layering and tentative beats, Sans Soucis beautifully captures the relief of coming back to yourself after an inexplicably difficult mental health struggle. She hopes that her new offering will inspire others to reach a similar level of peace. “The biggest lyrical takeaway from this song is ‘Stop everything and set yourself free, I’m telling you just follow what you need’,” she continues. “I feel like joy and creativity should be recycled, and I want to inspire others to feel creative in life, whatever that means for them.”

Sans Soucis will be releasing her new 6-track EP, On Time For Her, later this year and has a London showcase performance penned for September.

Watch the video for ‘I’m On’ below.

Follow Sans Soucis on bandcamp, Spotify, Instagram, Twitter & Facebook

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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