Track Of The Day: Softcult – ‘Perfect Blue’

A swirling, emotive reflection on a time laced with frustration, Canadian duo Softcult have shared their latest single ‘Perfect Blue’. Taken from their forthcoming EP Year of the Snake, which is set for release on 4th February, the track is an introspective take on how compromising your creativity to please others can lead to emotional burnout.

Formed of Ontario-based twins Phoenix and Mercedes Arn Horn, Softcult cut their teeth playing live shows in their local town of Kitchener, before moving on to bigger audiences on the North American tour circuit. Their experiences of playing and working within a male-dominated industry formed the foundation for their current sound, which is born from the desire to reject toxic standards of femininity and embrace a more equal world. Latest single ‘Perfect Blue’ reaffirms this narrative, lulling listeners with its soft dual vocals and intoxicating shoegaze-y riffs.

“We wrote ‘Perfect Blue’ about a time in our lives when we felt like nothing was in our control,” explains Mercedes. “In our previous project, we were signed to a label that butted heads with us creatively and wasn’t allowing us to express ourselves authentically. They weren’t interested in the music we were creating at the time, so we became unhealthily obsessed with trying to please them to release anything at all.”

“It felt as though we were putting on an act to survive,” Phoenix adds. “We didn’t feel like our art was representing us. There was a lot we wanted to say, but it was being stifled. We felt like we’d lost our integrity. The song is a reminder to empower yourself by standing up for what you believe in, or risk losing yourself altogether.”

The track is accompanied by a captivating video, produced and directed by Mercedes. “I wanted the viewer to feel like they are entering the mind of someone who is watching themselves transform, powerless to stop their metamorphosis,” she explains about the visuals. “I clearly remember times in my life when I felt pressure to become a version of myself that others wanted me to be, but that version wasn’t authentic to who I was. I felt like I was losing my integrity and my sense of self. I’d look at myself in the mirror and be disgusted at what I saw, unattached to who I had become. There’s a vibe of health anxiety, dysphoria, dissociation, a little horror element in there that I wanted to capture with the visuals. The skin peeling scenes are meant to elicit those feelings, like a snake shedding its skin.”

Watch the video for ‘Perfect Blue’ below.

Follow Softcult on Spotify, Instagram, Facebook & Twitter

Softcult UK Tour Dates 2022
Thursday, February 17th – Crofters – Bristol
Friday, February 18th – The Victoria – Birmingham
Saturday, February 19th – Heartbreakers – Southampton
Sunday, February 20th – The Key Club – Leeds
Tuesday, February 22nd – The Garage (Attic Bar) – Glasgow
Wednesday, February 23rd – The Deaf Institute – Manchester
Thursday, February 24th – Camden Assembly – London

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Kate CrudgingtonLeave a comment

LISTEN: Beach House – ‘Once Twice Melody: Chapter 1’

A cinematic introduction to their new record, dream pop outfit Beach House have shared the first four tracks from their upcoming album, Once Twice Melody. Set for release via Bella Union on 18th February, the record features 18 tracks which the band have chosen to share in four ‘Chapters’ in the lead up to the release, with ‘Chapter 1’ being available to listen to now.

Featuring eponymous track ‘Once Twice Melody’, ‘Chapter 1’ is a lilting, majestic showcase of the band’s new material. Produced entirely by Beach House and using a live string ensemble for the first time, ‘Superstar’, ‘Pink Funeral’ and ‘Through Me’ shimmer with the duo’s trademark lullaby-esque vocals, dramatic riffs and atmospheric beats. Bittersweet lyrics and heady synths combine to make this first instalment a captivating, tranquil listen.

Beach House will be releasing a new ‘Chapter’ of music each month until the full album is released in February 2022. The band will be touring the UK and Europe in Spring, which will include a night at London’s Brixton Academy on 26th May. Tickets for each date are on sale from Friday 19th November (more info here)

Listen to ‘Chapter 1’ of Once Twice Melody below.

Follow Beach House on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: David Belisle

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Kate CrudgingtonLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: Bad Idea – ‘Crash’

A hazy, melodic musing on the familiar feeling of burning out, Leeds-based band Bad Idea have shared their latest single ‘Crash’. Released via Leeds label Come Play With Me, the track meshes the band’s shoegaze and dream pop sensibilities with relatable lyrics to create a swirling distraction from the overwhelming desire to crash out of your many commitments.

Formed in 2016 on a drunken night out dancing to Madonna’s ‘Like A Prayer’, Bad Idea’s Sarah Sefton and Daniel Johnson chose the band’s name after entering into a new creative project and a new romantic relationship together simultaneously. They put aside their concerns about how this might affect their musical dynamics and enlisted the help of new bandmates Charlie Peacock and Liam Lambert in 2019 to flesh out their sounds. On new single ‘Crash’, the band embrace the idea of “putting yourself in front of a slow moving car, or acquiring a minor injury of some sort to get out of your commitments, because you’re too tired and want to go home” with atmospheric flair.

“It’s a sad song about exhaustion and anxiety, but also camaraderie,” vocalist Sarah explains further. “It describes an anxiety that I share with most of my colleagues and friends..the song mirrors this feeling in the music with slow, drifting and overlapping vocals and sudden hard choruses.”

Listen to ‘Crash’ below.

 

Follow Bad Idea on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Facebook & Instagram

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

Kate CrudgingtonLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: Pixie Cut Rhythm Orchestra – ‘Empty Envelope’

A disarming reflection on the emotional resurrection that occurs in the wake of a bad decision, Dublin-based trio Pixie Cut Rhythm Orchestra have shared their latest single ‘Empty Envelope’. Released via Anon Records, the track is a brooding, shoegazey lament inspired by a dream that vocalist & guitarist Sarah Deegan had about receiving an empty letter in the post.

Formed of Deegan, Alice Grollero (bassist) and Danni Nolan (drummer), Pixie Cut Rhythm Orchestra met via Dublin’s underground & DIY music scenes and began writing music together inspired by the sounds of Mitski, Angel Olsen, Kathleen Hanna and Sinead O’ Connor. The band deliver their observations on life with a raw sincerity, which previous single ‘I Didn’t Love You When I Said I Did and I Don’t Now’ achieved through its shimmering guitars & Deegan’s cutting lyrics. With their new single ‘Empty Envelope’, the band have crafted another slow-burning, moving ode to emotional resilience.

“‘Empty Envelope’ examines the process of burning everything down to rebuild from the ashes,” Deegan explains. “It’s about the cyclical nature of bad decisions.” Recorded by Sean Montgomery Dietz, mixed by Sean Montgomery Dietz and Shane Tobler and mastered by Blanka, ‘Empty Envelope’ smoulders with poetic unrest, guiding listeners through the relief and frustration that comes with moving forward after making a mistake.

Listen to ‘Empty Envelope’ below.

 

Follow Pixie Cut Rhythm Orchestra on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Greg Purcell

Kate Crudgington
@kcbobcut

Kate CrudgingtonLeave a comment