Anonymity and misdirection are powerful tools used in many art forms to allow the creative output to speak for itself, and this very much applies to UK newcomer Lonely Gimmick aka Alex Pow. Well, they’re actually neither of these names. These purposefully chosen pseudonyms allow the musician to shake off nearly all remnants of identity and to express themselves authentically through the music.
At odds with the song’s title, new single ‘Grumpy Days’ is an honest perspective on love and how relationships take work, patience and compromise, unlike the sugary-sweet version that we’re often served up through love songs and romantic films. As such, Lonely Gimmick‘s lofi psychedelic song teeters on the line of controlled composition and improvised chaos. It’s all noodling guitar riffs, breakbeat drums (courtesy of The Drukes Spirit’s Olly Bretts), hand-tapped percussion and washed-out vocals, colliding and moving together to express the harmony and friction of relationships, especially when you first move in together. LG clearly strays from convention through his style and that sonic liberation allows him to convey the nuances of what it means to start of new life with a significant other.
Whether you can relate to the themes here or not, we reckon you’re going to enjoy the lashings of funk and freakbeat, as well as the goofy charm of ‘Grumpy Days’.
You can also listen to ‘Grumpy Days’ in our Outsiders Club playlist.
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