Want to channel those #HotGirlSummer vibes?
BY ELEANOR NOYCE, IMAGES BY CHIARA GAMBUTO, TIANA TIMMERBERG, ELUVIER ACOSTA & ITUNES
Phwoar, it’s hot outside, isn’t it? The UK might be braced for the heatwave to become even more intense over the next week, but at least we’ve got the following tracks to channel those hot girl summer vibes. And by hot girl summer, we mean: it’s too hot. Grab those fans and that suncream, girlies and enbies.
Lizzo – Everybody’s Gay
Queen Lizzo hath returneth! Today, she releases SPECIAL, produced by the likes of Ricky Reed, Mark Ronson and Max Martin. This is a classic self-love album featuring the likes of About Damn Time, 2 B Loved (Am I Ready), I Love You Bitch and If You Love Me. But our favourite, of course, is queer anthem Everybody’s Gay. With the chorus chanting mantra “Dance the night away / (Keep your pussy poppin’, pop those percolates) / Everybody’s gay, yeah / (It’s a happy place in here, baby, you’re safe) / We can take our mask off / We can all ball and parlay / I can hardly wait” how could we not absolutely stan this one? It’s hot girl summer vibes all over.
Tegan and Sara – Yellow
Everyone’s favourite lesbian sisters are back! This week, as well as dropping new single Yellow, the pair announced new album Crybaby. Double whammy! It’s due for release on 21 October, marking their 10th studio album. Yellow is a sweet little anthem, with the music video directed by Mark Myers playing a subtle tribute to the Coldplay song of the same name.
Sara remarks that Yellow “was written after we began to take steps to heal the bruises we have both carried with us since adolescence and early adulthood – wounds that never quite healed right and flare up seasonally, sending us spiralling backward in time. Are we doomed to remain forever 15, breaking up and breaking apart? I hope not.”
“This was the first time where, while we were still drafting our demos, we were thinking about how the songs were going to work together”, furthers Tegan. “It wasn’t even just that Sara was making lyric changes or reorganising the parts to my songs, it was that she was also saying to me, ‘This song is going to be faster,’ or ‘It’s going to be in a different key.’ But Sara effectively improves everything of mine that she works on.”
Rae Morris – Rachel@Fairyland
Written and recorded at home in North London, Rae Morris has released her third studio album, Rachel@Fairyland. With tracks No Woman Is An Island, Skyscraper Love and A Table For Two, this project is, in many ways, a rebirth. Rae recorded this one alongside her musical partner-in-crime and real-life partner Fryars, who features on Go Dancing. Rachel@Fairyland channels the memories speaking both to the child Rae was and the woman she’s become, exploring her experiences with modern life, new motherhood and navigating the music industry.
King Princess – Change The Locks
Get excited! King Princess releases her new album, Hold On Baby, on 29 July. This week, she shared Change The Locks, a touching track about a queer relationship falling apart, lamenting “you’re changing the locks on your heart ‘cause you’re bored.” As ever, her latest endeavour was produced alongside Mark Ronson, Ethan Gruska, Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner, Dave Hamelin, Shawn Everett and Tobias Jesso Jr.
Maripool – Softly
The moniker of Lisbon-born, London-based songwriter Natasha Simões, Maripool is a “one girl band” channelling guitar-driven, bedroom pop vibes. She bought her first-ever guitar with her first paycheck after moving to London at 18, and spent her free time teaching herself. Starting with her musical heroes from the mid-west emo scene, Natasha joined a band at 21, three years later. She soon decided that her true calling was to go solo and began teaching herself drums and bass. This is where the songs of Maripool came to life. Softly marks her first release after signing to Practise Music, and her future sure does look bright.
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