‘CPR’ is DOWNGIRL at their most volatile. Snarling, blown-out guitars crash against pounding drums, creating a wall of distortion that feels both feral and defiant. Alex Neville’s vocals slice through with venom and urgency, spilling frustration, adrenaline and the lingering panic of the night that inspired it. The result is a cathartic battle cry.

For all their ferocity on and off stage, DOWNGIRL are not immune to the same dangers that shadow so many women in male-dominated spaces. ‘CPR’ pulls its story from a gig gone wrong, a night far from home where the air felt wrong from the start.

Surrounded by drugged-up crowds and aggressive men, the band found themselves retreating into a tiny tent, clutching a baseball bat and waiting for daylight. Speaking on the track, the band states: “The song reflects the sense of being prey in someone else’s territory. There’s an unspoken understanding that you’re at their mercy, and many of us know that instinctive awareness of how easily we could become targets of male violence.”

The track channels that creeping terror, the instinctive awareness many women carry in spaces where power tilts the wrong way and safety feels conditional. It is a song born from survival and the unsettling realisation of how easily a night out can turn into something far darker.  

DOWNGIRL want to be clear that real change begins with men taking responsibility for the environments they create, the behaviours they normalise, and the silence they allow. The track stands as a release of everything they carried that night and a reminder that safety should never be a privilege earned but a condition upheld by everyone. 

For the music video, DOWNGIRL wanted to reclaim that fear and flip it on its head by creating a space rooted in strength, pride, and community. They centred queer joy and safety, featuring Dykes on Bikes as a symbol of power and solidarity. Directed and shot by Tim Kent (they/them), the clip celebrates the protective, vibrant spaces queer communities build, the places where DOWNGIRL feel like they can breathe easy.

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For those new to the shrine of DOWNGIRL, this four-piece femme-grunge band hails from Gadigal Land, and has shaken up audiences into a frenzy with their in-your-face feminine rage. With their killer blend of nu-metal, soul punk, and 90s style grunge, they’ve risen to prominence in alternative circles in a big way.

Their unapologetic attitude and unrestrained sound come swinging full force in their newest dual release, ‘HORSEGIRL’ and ‘DIG’. ‘HORSEGIRL’ is imbued with thumping basslines, abrupt bursts of electric guitar, and breathy, moaning vocals, building up to a frantic feeling of ecstasy. The song plays on dynamics of power, establishing who’s the alpha in the pair, who’s the racehorse to a pony.

‘DIG’ is the point where push comes to shove, flowing on from ‘HORSEGIRL’ but twisting the energy to something vengeful, dwelling on the intersection of sex and violence, and how far someone can bend before they break. This song reclaims its power with intense, aggressive 90’s guitar and drums, powerful angry vocals and a chorus that digs its nails in and holds on tight.

The music video reflects the dichotomy and flow between these two songs. It acts as an ode to the alt girl of the 90’s, and an homage to 90’s media like Hole, Sailor Moon, Aaron Carter, Hello Kitty, and The Spice Girls. It begins with ‘HORSEGIRL’, delving deep into a nostalgic, erotic, bright pink digital landscape, channelling late 90’s sleepover vibes with a hyper sapphic edge.

As the music flows into ‘DIG’, the pink colour scheme turns illuminated green and teleports most of the band to a digital prison inspired by 90’s gaming. Vocalist and lead guitarist Kristen Adams plays through digital streets, taking down toxic men at every turn. The video culminates with a magical girl transformation cutscene, before she shreds a guitar solo through a guitar-hero sequence, claiming victory and freeing her girls from the shackles of the game.

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Brooklyn artist beccs shares the new single and music video, ‘Good Comin”. ‘Good Comin’,’ is a whimsical indie-pop track about running away from something good comin’; be it a healthy relationship, one’s higher potential, or quite literally one’s own orgasms! The lyrics are laced with sensual innuendo, heartfelt honesty, and some killer melodic vocal hooks that showcase beccs’ soulful and dexterous voice. Like anything that comes out of beccs, the bouncy, playful bop, produced by Godfrey Furchtgott, Eben D’Amico from Saves The Day, Jack Mullin, and beccs, is informed by a real depth around the artist’s struggle and trauma around intimacy. beccs says: “I think at the end of the day, it’s recognizing that while our bodies might be home to a lot of pain, they can also be home to a lot of joy and pleasure. I wrote this song to flirt with that idea; that after everything our bodies and hearts have overcome, we don’t just stop at feeling safe. We get to feel pleasure too. On the cusp of joy and in the wake of pain, ‘Good Comin’ lovingly and playfully asks us to inch ourselves closer towards a path of joy when other voices tell us to run.” The music video is shot with a queer/femme/trans crew of close collaborators and dear friends including Berriez plus-size vintage shop owner and stylist Emma Zack, choreographer Holly Sass, and director Julia Barrett Mitchell.

The Keening— the solo music project of Rebecca Vernon (ex-SubRosa)—announce debut album, Little Bird, out October 6 on Relapse Records. An ultra-melodic foray into haunted bogs, endless wells, secret crimes, jeweled cages and the unenviable curse of being a murder witness abound, Little Bird carries Vernon’s signature sounds throughout— deeply moving passages give away to cinematic, sprawling moments of chambered doom. As dark as this sounds, Little Bird also fills the air with a sense of magic and wonder – there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. The Keening weaves a web of lush orchestration, American Gothic sensibilities and wintry murder ballads set against a backdrop of dark, shimmering folk. Vernon’s previous band SubRosa echoes in The Keening’s chamber doom, flowing with flute, strings, harp, French horn, piano, organ and hammered dulcimer. The Keening’s Rebecca Vernon comments: “I’m excited to finally start releasing this music into the ether, along with the album art, and the music video for single ‘Little Bird.’ I think the film company 10 Seconds to Comply (Ken Whiting, Andrew Bonazelli and Manny OA) did a phenomenal job pulling together this music video and bringing their beautiful vision to light. They really captured the spirit and essence of the song. I’m proud of my friend Lucy Sharapata for playing the lead so well. I’m also excited to share the album art – two oil paintings by Lis Pardoe of Portland. Thanks to Relapse Records for making this happen!”

Fresh off supporting pop queen Ashe on her Australian-wide tour, Phebe Starr is on the brink of a new musical chapter. The modern world has developed an excessive fixation on automation, bombarding us with the ideals of efficiency and perfection. In this pursuit of short-term success, we risk sacrificing the essential elements of depth, individuality, and human connection. Over the past few years, our culture has encouraged us to navigate life purely through intellectual processes, as if these systems could replace our humanity and provide certainty. ‘One Step. Two Step.’ conveys a complex emotional journey within a relationship and the push-pull dynamic between two individuals far beyond surface-level emotions or logic. We brave this emotional rollercoaster for the payoff of human connection and interaction, and through these relationships, we connect with ourself and others.

Much-tipped indie force HotWax have shared new single ‘Drop’. Snapped up by Marathon Artists, the three-piece released their stellar debut EP A Thousand Times earlier this year. Taking time out to focus on their next step, HotWax will play an epic tour this Autumn with Royal Blood. Alongside this the group have shared a seismic new single, with ‘Drop’ carrying a heavyweight grunge-leaning mixture. Out now, the band’s pop appeal is evident, and while the needle is pointed firmly to the red HotWax also deliver some ear-worm melodies. A punchy, ambitious return, ‘Drop’ comes equipped with a tongue-in-cheek video shot by Josh Quinton. Styled in Fall ‘23 Charles Jeffrey, it’s a hilarious UFO-themed video. The film maker comments: “My aim for this video was to create an explosive & exciting journey through the band members’ brains that matches the exhilarating energy of the song, whilst also fusing their own personal style with my love for trashy 70s B movies and 90s kids TV… I wanted to use the symbolism of space travel to represent the band’s momentum and fresh landing into the world whilst adhering to a strong DIY ethos and reaching maximum altitudes of fun.” [via Clash]

Charli XCX has shared a new video for ‘Speed Drive,’ her song for Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie. Directed by Ramez Silyan, the video stars Charli XCX racing a convertible pink Corvette with Devon Lee Carlson, getting interrupted by a video-call from fellow Barbie contributor Sam Smith, and then dancing as the Corvette does donuts around her. [via Pitchfork]

cumgirl8 have shared a video for their song ‘cursed angel’. The track intriguingly diverges from CG8’s usual choral narratives. It teases with the harmonious whispers reminiscent of a 60s girl group before diving into chaos, resonating in spectral reverberations. The song distinctly embodies the eerie feeling of mental confinement experienced in an altered mental state, successfully encapsulating and portraying this disquieting sensation. “It’s about feeling like you’re slipping out of reality; it’s uncontrollable and sometimes you can’t contain it,” says the band. “If you don’t fight it, the outcome can be positive.“ ‘cursed angel,’ delves even deeper, invoking a frenetic frolic on the edges of madness. Lida Fox, Veronika Vilim, Chase Lombardo, and Avishag Rodrigues do not disappoint in their discordant dance with derangement. In fact, they’ve taken this danse macabre straight to the mountains in the fascinating new video directed by Peter Kaaden. In a provocative blend of reverence and rebellion, the video kicks off with the quartet clad in pristine Catholic school uniforms, poised in a chapel’s solemn embrace. But as the reel unfolds, the sanctity of the scene gives way to a raw, primal transformation. Venturing deep into the mystical mountain’s embrace, the tableau shifts from piety to paganism, as the girls engage in a mud dance that feels like an ancient rite reawakened. This descent into untamed spiritualism is juxtaposed with surreal, trippy animations – lambs, often symbolizing innocence, and alter ego avatars, suggesting deeper, perhaps darker, layers of self. The visual odyssey is a wild ride, daring its viewers to journey between two worlds, from structured religion to uninhibited nature, challenging our perceptions of conformity and wild abandon. [via Post-Punk]

Last month, Jamila Woods announced a new album, Water Made Us, and shared its lead single ‘Tiny Garden.’ Now, the Chicago musician is back with a new song, ‘Boomerang.’ “I co-wrote this song with Nao, GRADES and George Moore on a sweet London day last year,” Woods said in a statement. “It was amazing to work with Nao and meet her longtime collaborators and feel the synergy that they have together. It’s a song about that kind of relationship that keeps popping back up throughout your life, that magnetic attachment you have to someone and the excitement and anxiety that comes with wondering ‘will we or won’t we?” Check out the music video, which was directed by VAM and shot at the Chicago Magic Lounge, below. [via Stereogum]

K-pop girl group aespa have released their new single ‘Better Things’. ‘Better Things’ is aespa’s second fully English single, following July 2022’s ‘Life’s Too Short’. Meanwhile, the accompanying music video follows the girl group as they chase a mystical creature, which leads them to tropical paradise. “I’m sorry that it hurts you / No, I’m sorry I ain’t sorry / ​aespa, big girls making money / ​aespa, you’re our number one fan now / You can only see me at a sold-out show,” the quartet sing on the bridge of ‘Better Things’. [via NME]

Powerhouse indie rock duo Child Seat has just released their latest single, ‘The Punchline’, an exploration on expectations and coming of age.’The Punchline’ has a certain melancholic feel to it, as the band delves into an honest conversation with themselves; the candid lyrics touch on feeling left behind in life, along with the insecurities and frustrations that come with reaching different milestones. The song is raw and painfully open, as it makes the listener question their place in life, and even their own self worth. It’s a very relatable release for those who feel disappointed in their reality, or anyone still trying to find themselves. The blend of 80’s synths and moody 2000’s indie rock is haunting; there’s an underlying feeling of sadness, despite the joyful beat. The intro feels bright, in contrast with the soulful vocals, with an almost jarring, metallic sound when we reach the bridge. As the listener starts paying close attention, ‘The Punchline’ invokes an unsettling atmosphere, like being in the middle of a cheering crowd, but with deep sorrow within. [via Melodic Mag]

CLT DRP have released a new single and video, ‘I See My Body Through You’. It’s a cut from the band’s recently-announced new album, Nothing Clever, Just Feelings. The Brighton trio’s second full-length will arrive on September 8 via Venn Records. Vocalist Annie Dorrett says: “‘I See My Body Through You’ is probably one of the tracks we’re looking forward to putting out the most. The content of the song set against the visuals all came out perfectly. There’s a lot behind this song, different ways to interpret it, but the unsettling feeling and tension in the orchestration and in the video match up to the emotions that created this song in the first place—the emotions of being constantly on show, being objectified, and your own confidence being warped because of other people’s gaze. I think Alice heard the song and understood those feelings immediately, as most women do, and came up with some striking and strange concepts for the video. Working together, videographer Sam Morris captured Alice’s vision which led to this beautifully eerie video.” [via Upset]

Backdropped against the Los Angeles cityscape, the magical realism and cosmic abstractions in REHMA’s ‘HYPNOTIC’ single and music video gives major superhero energy. With REHMA’s fighting companion, Alé Araya by her side, the video oozes powerful femme energy, disrupting traditional superhero narratives and fucking sh*t up, yuh. This is especially true since REHMA & Alé Araya are just as much combat companions as they are genuine collaborators. The Pakistani femme fatale shines in front of the camera with ease and presence. Inspired by a community of powerful femme creatives, ‘HYPNOTIC’ is produced by Alé Araya & Rhea Raj, directed by Elise Schatz, and styled/creative directed by REHMA’s older sisters Rumsha & Rohaina Hassan. The sound pulls from neo-pop, progressive R&B, and electronic influences, garnering over 650K views across platforms. [via Sheesh Media]

Sydney/Gadigal fiery four-piece, DOWNGIRL, has unleashed their new single, ‘Boys,’ alongside the accompanying video. The powerful track comes ahead of their anticipated EP, Manic, which is set for release on September 22. Unleashing an uncompromising punk spirit and an authentically commanding sonic identity, DOWNGIRL possesses an extraordinary capacity to infuse their music with potent social observations. Their inaugural EP, Manic, only solidifies this trait. Comprising eight tracks, including the already unveiled ‘2006’ and the eponymous ‘Manic’, the EP emerges as a visceral product of the band channelling their fervour and navigating their inner struggles. Each song within the collection captures the fierce dynamism and unrelenting punk essence that has been their hallmark ever since the release of their debut single in 2022. “The title, Manic, was lifted from our single of the same name. We chose it as it encapsulates our state of being when the band was in its infancy. This EP is a diary, charting our progress from our beginnings in the bedroom when we were physically separated to now, being in each other’s bloody pockets!” says Lou Harbidge. Front and centre as the flagship track, ‘Boys’ delivers a direct and incisive examination of the persistent legacy of violence propagated by cisgender men. DOWNGIRL’s ingenious way of satirising these destructive norms is seamlessly paired with a music video that wields empowerment. This visual masterpiece accentuates the LGBTQIA+ community, highlighting their vitality and tenacity in the face of repressive norms. It is a triumphant homage to those who assert their authenticity and refuse to be confined by oppressive conventions. [via AAA Backstage]

Slayyyter is counting down the days to the September 22 release of her second album STARFUCKER, a project themed around fame, sex, femme fatales, and celebrity obsession. It is the second of those themes that acts as the basis for ‘Erotic Electronic,’ the latest single to be lifted from the album following ‘Out of Time’ and ‘Miss Belladonna.’ The song is a sleazy electro-pop banger filled with lust and desire. It comes with a video in which Slayyyter catches the eye of many an onlooker as she walks down the street semi-nude, with only two black bars protecting her modesty. Writing about the video on social media, Slayyyter shared: “hope it makes u feel something (h*rny).” [via The FADER]

Madison Beer has released a new single, ‘Spinnin”. It’s the latest cut from her recently-announced next album. Silence Between Songs will be released on September 15, and has already been teased by ‘Home To Another One’. Speaking about the release, Madison says: “This song is a reflection of a time when everything seemed to stand still. I felt like every day was a cycle and I was stuck in such an anxious place, yet I could finally explore the thoughts and emotions in my head. I dreamed of a video that was cinematic and visually striking that brought those emotions to life, and I’m so proud of what we created.” [via Dork]

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Full of juicy, on the pulse bass lines and roaring in-your-face guitars, ‘2006’ is true Australian punk. Packed with punchy vocals and rough as guts instrumentation, the track is a wall of sound that shines a light on the continued poor treatment of First Nations people. Deep-rooted with political issues, ‘2006’ hits home for the fury-filled kids of today as well as the original fans of the Sex Pistols and The Runaways.

Skarlett Saramore states: “’Where the bloody hell are you?’ was a Tourism Australia slogan used in 2006. We are exploiting the use of this slogan to reinforce the importance of recognising what land we still stand on. ‘2006’ takes aim at the politicians and people benefiting off the colonisation of Australia, including the injustices committed by the system that continues to negatively affect the lives of our Indigenous and First Nations people.”

Brought to you by your local inner-city d*&kheads, the ‘2006’ music video – inspired by former Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s holiday in Hawaii while Australian bushfires ravaged the country – takes the piss out of four Aussie politicians who’ve shown lacklustre leadership and terrible judgement.

DOWNGIRL don the Polly attire and hit the street like the wrecking balls these politicians were. From tackling kids in the park to engaging in complete debauchery at the pub, the clip is like a montage of the sh*tstorm Australians have had to witness over the last decade. Fittingly, they are seen galavanting around, green-screened over just some of the mess they made. Concluding the clip, they exit the pub tripping over themselves – pants down, covered in their own vomit.

“It is a parody of greatest proportions, a farcical comedy”, says Saramore, “injecting humour into the seriousness of the subject matter, which is not only representative of the “Australian larrikin” character but a mirror being held up for all.”

The post Track of the Week: ‘2006’ by DOWNGIRL appeared first on She Makes Music.

BIBI has unveiled the music video for ‘Animal Farm’, from her upcoming studio debut Noir: Lowlife Princess. The release also marks the musician’s 24th birthday. In the blood-soaked new visual, BIBI shows up at a lavish party attended by masked elites. Brandishing a katana, she begins to behead each partygoer, revealed to all have pig snouts in the place of noses, one by one. “Sing the song of lies to death / Dance like the devil / Under the big guillotine at the centre of the grand feast / Whose neck is that?,” she sings in the chorus. ‘Animal Farm”s music video also introduces a figure named Oh Geum-ji, inspired by the character Lee Geum-ja from famed film director Park Chan-wook’s 2005 revenge-thriller Lady Vengeance, who the narrative of BIBI’s album will be based upon. [via NME]

Weyes Blood has shared the music video for ‘It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody,’ the first single from her anticipated new album And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow. Directed by Charlotte Ercoli, the video casts Natalie Mering in a post-apocalyptic musical where, Omega Man-style, she is the last person alive on earth, though she does dance amid the debris and the dead with an animated smartphone. Natalie herself calls this video “demented” and you can watch it above. [via Brooklyn Vegan]

Baby Queen has shared her much teased new single ‘Lazy’. Following on from her stint supporting Olivia Rodrigo on the European leg of her ‘SOUR’ world tour, and coming ahead of another support slot with fellow icon Conan Gray on his US dates throughout October, you can check out the track above. A press release claims Baby Queen – aka Bella Latham – “was asked to elaborate on the track but, in line with the sentiment expressed, she’s too f*g lazy.” [via Dork]

Explosive and energetic femme nu punk/grunge-rockers DOWNGIRL have doused stages around their hometown in Gadigal land in their highly flammable sonic kerosene and are kicking things up a notch with the release of their track, ‘Manic’. Bursting onto the scene with the dynamite ‘Beauty Queen’, this epic second track, ‘Manic’, off the group’s upcoming EP is 4 and a half minutes of powerful punk goodness. The gradual build of gritty riffs and fury-driven drums match the energy of the lyrical confessions that escalate with a fight or flight intensity. By the time it gets there, it fervently begs for relief with a euphoric, wall-to-wall noise-filled chorus and its refrain, ‘Manic’. The song hits like shots of cinnamon whisky – hard, fast and to dizzying effect, with a sweet but spicy aftertaste. Each member gives it their all, and collectively let go like an unrelenting force of nature. The enthralling track begs your worst enemy, ‘Do I have to keep reminding you I’m not too much for you?’. DOWNGIRL on the track’s origin: “‘Manic’ was written during Sydney’s last pandemic lockdown as a back and forth via the WWW. It explores mental health issues and the responsibility we must take for them during a time which is insular and introspective.” Filmed and directed by Stackhat, the music video for ‘Manic’ reflects a distorted reality with scenes of the band members at home, but flipped upside down. Things progressively get weirder. One band member draws a widening circle of smudged pink lipstick in repeated motions while forcing an unconvincing smile. Another beats drumsticks against a box of Froot Loops, while a third screams into the bathroom toilet. It’s disorienting and uncomfortable to watch, much like experiencing the timewarp of lockdown and getting caught in the mental battlefield of too much time spent alone. The mania-fuelled chorus is emphasised with DOWNGIRL piling into the car for a head-banging / scream-along drive down a tree-lined road.

‘Repeat After Me,’ the new single from Cornish singer-songwriter Nell Davies, is a witty indie pop song about being replaced in someone’s affections. Like all Nell’s songs, it’s a completely DIY production, recorded in a converted pigsty in the garden of her house near Penzance. The video, which features Nell’s evil twin, and was inspired by equal parts The Parent Trap, Twin Peaks and Fight Club, was filmed guerrilla-style at a remote Victorian folly in the early hours of the morning, before the tourists turned up. Nell says, “’Repeat After Me’ is about people going through life stubbornly refusing to learn from their mistakes, so making the same ones over and over again. It’s a trait I find extremely irritating, especially in myself.”

flowerovlove has shared a video for her most recent track, ‘I Gotta I Gotta’. Following up on recent singles ‘Get With You’ and ‘Hannah Montana’, she explains: “‘I Gotta I Gotta’ is fueled by searching for where you want to go in life and not knowing where that is, but needing to go now, fearing a lack of time.” [via Dork]

Now that Paramore have returned, it makes cosmic sense that Florida pop-punk trio Meet Me @ The Altar should release a new song too. In the midst of their tour supporting MUNA, Meet Me @ The Altar are back with a brand-new song, ‘Say It (To My Face),’ and it’s a banger. Built on a foundation of soaring, shout-along choruses and chunky guitar, ‘Say It (To My Face)’ is about shutting down anonymous social-media haters and is set to appear on the band’s forthcoming debut album, coming early next year. [via Stereogum]

Sam Smith unveils the official video for their new single, ‘Unholy’ ft. Kim Petras. Directed by the inimitable Floria Sigismondi (The Runaways film, David Bowie, Christina Aguilera) and choreographed by French dance collective (LA)HORDE, the provocative film is set in ‘The Body Shop’, a debauched show-world of wonder and danger. Leading a diverse and Queer cast, Sam Smith stars as the singing MC and Kim Petras as a dancer in a lustful extravaganza of costume, dance, and sexual power. Marrying the spectacle of Bob Fosse rubbing up against the unrestrained nihilism of A Clockwork Orange with a touch of vaudeville thrown in, ‘Unholy’ is a visual feast. Cameos include Gottmik and Violet Chachki (RuPaul’s Drag Race) and adult film star Paddy O’Brian.

Royal & the Serpent has returned with the music video for ‘Death of Me,’ the second chapter of a five-part series. The latest installment from the Los Angeles artist (born Ryan Santiago) is a somber electropop train of thought, and the accompanying visual sees the singer-songwriter thrown into her own version of A Clockwork Orange. Santiago has been releasing a track and video each week as a part of a project dubbed happiness is an inside job, an effort that will allow listeners to join her in pursuit of happiness. ‘Death of Me’ marks the followup to last week’s chapter, ‘IM FINE.’ “It’s kind of like a journey through my thoughts on figuring out how the fuck to be happy (which you would think would be simpler, but they really don’t spell just it out for you!),” Santiago tells Consequence. “This week’s chapter is a song particularly referencing the notion that we’re all losing touch with ourselves and with one another — even though seemingly we’re more connected than ever,” she adds. Indeed, ‘Death of Me’ epitomizes the idea of harsh reality. In a world consumed by technology, Santiago realizes that screens and machines do the inverse of what they were intended for — keeping people connected. The despair of the track is matched by its video, thanks in part to its Kubrick-esque brainwashing sequence and cuts to an empty room colored by dark organs spewing out of Santiago.“The internet killed conversation, personality, and friends/ We’re all depressed and self-obsessed,” she sings over a soft, dragged guitar before shifting to an intense sound with drums to match. For Santiago, this track is sonically “a ride” — one that she is especially satisfied with. “I honestly very rarely am excited to listen to the music I make, but there really is something so special about this one,” Santiago notes. “It somehow still gives me chills and that really never happens if I’m listening to my own stuff. I feel like it’s a little piece of my heart and brain in song form.” [via Consequence]

Upcoming Welsh artist Thallo shares new Welsh language single ‘Pluo’ (transl. Feathering) and announces details of her forthcoming bilingual Crescent EP, inspired by a unique subject matter and one deeply personal to Thallo – immobility. On new single ‘Pluo,’ Thallo showcases her unique sound, one that is enveloping, otherworldly, and multi-instrumented, spanning bedroom and dream-pop with subtle, textured jazz infusions and contemporary classic touches, both ethereal and utterly enthralling. Pluo translates as ‘feathering’ in English, meaning ‘lightly snowing’ which relates to the song’s poignant opening line “I gather dust which is feathering stillness.” Inspired by the effects of a sudden condition that Thallo suffered in 2020 which caused chronic knee pain and debilitating mobility issues, Pluo touches on the peculiar pain of watching the world return to normal following lockdown, whilst Thallo was trapped in what she describes as “My own personal lockdown.” As she expands “I felt so stuck, unable to return to my normal life. But most of all, the song is a cry of fear for the loneliness and hopelessness of being left behind whilst everyone else moves forward.” ‘Pluo’s accompanying video, a collaboration with Welsh channel Lŵp (S4C) produced and co-directed by Aled Wyn Jones and Andy Pritchard, takes inspiration from psychological horror and is filmed at the popular ghost-hunting spot Bron y Garth Hospital – a former 1800s workhouse/hospital now abandoned and frozen in-time. As Thallo explains “The setting perfectly mirrors Pluo’s lyrics of feeling stuck and deteriorating.” It sees Thallo wake to find herself in a blood-filled bath on the decaying hospital floor, what ensues is a struggle to escape the derelict building peppered with eerie imagery and horrifying flashbacks that lead to the chilling conclusion – that Thallo is in fact dead and trapped in purgatory.

Atlanta-based art-rock band Mamalarky release their second full-length album, Pocket Fantasy, on Fire Talk Records. Along with the album release, the band have shared a new video for album track ‘Frog 2’, along with a video directed by Spencer Ford. “I don’t know if I’ve better synthesized the way I feel with words than in this song,” says singer/guitarist Livvy Bennett. “I think I successfully collaged what I feel every day. I was going through a majorly introverted time in my life, but I was feeling hopeful and grounded in that. I was feeling less and less alone in my own little musical world. Michael was bullied into writing this song honestly. We were sitting at this dinky Casio and I said WRITE SOMETHING, and he did somewhat begrudgingly. I wrote the words and harmonies over it on on a series of desert drives between Austin and LA, trying to make something materialize.”

girli is back, but not as you once knew her – she releases her very relatable single, ‘I Really Fked It Up’ via AllPoints/Believe. It is led by a thumping melody and culminates in an urgent chorus, showcasing girli’s soaring vocals. The artist has entered her most unapologetically pop era yet, and ‘I Really Fked It Up’ is just the beginning of the next long-awaited chapter. girli’s new era-defining glam and wardrobe complement a stunning creative directed by the inspirational Fiona Garden (Wet Leg, Years & Years, Grimes and more). Milly Toomey (AKA girli) has been on an explorative journey of self-discovery, only to conclude that she can’t be boxed in. The singer-songwriter had been questioning who she was and had put so much pressure on knowing the answer, but soon realised it’s okay to not always know. To mark this epiphany, girli wrote the music she has always wanted to release, and one of the outcomes is ‘I Really F**ked It Up’. girli explains, “I wrote this song about doing destructive things to feel excitement, and absolutely hating myself for it. Writing this song made the whole project fall into place; why am I like this? Who is controlling my puppet strings when I do things I don’t want to do?”

Alternative artist Molly Moore has released ‘Hate Myself,’ the latest single from her forthcoming album, Miserably Sublime, expected early 2023. The single, co-written with Nevin Sastry (Phem, PRETTYMUCH) and Josh Murty (Maggie Lindemann), is injected with anthemic energy as Molly speaks to the mental turmoil she faced while falling victim to depression and self-sabotage. Amplified by a blend of steady drum beats and searing guitar licks, the track features a sing-along chorus full of self-deprecating dry humor about coming to terms with how you see yourself and those around you. The accompanying music video was directed by Molly and Francesca Maldonado (Justin Bieber, Dixie D’Amelio, Ashley Graham) and leans into the track’s lyrical playfulness as Molly comes face-to-face with herself. “I wrote the song during a very transitional period of my life. I’d been going to therapy and becoming aware that I tend to have a negative narrative happening with myself in my head,” shares Molly. “I was feeling pressure seeing all of my friends living more stable lives than me, getting married and having kids, while I’m in LA writing songs every day. I was also falling in love with someone that was emotionally unavailable, so I wrote this song with a bit of a sarcastic tone to try and process all of this. My goal with this song is to create a conversation that allows people to face their negative internal battles and challenge those perceived truths with another, kinder perspective that we can be nice to ourselves and still be radically honest.” [via Broadway World]

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