Heartbreaking Bravery

Ever since Perfect Pussy released I have lost all desire for feeling they’ve endured a level of scrutiny that’s generally given to bands who are several records removed from their debut demo (it’s next to impossible to stress enough how insane that is, especially considering this is a band operating on the fringes of hardcore). Since then, they’ve lit off a firestorm of opinions, played as fiercely as possible, released an extraordinary preview track of what promises to be an incendiary LP, a music video for I have lost all desire for feeling‘s lead-off track that was nothing short of life-affirming, and vocalist Meredith Graves was even kind enough to grace this very site with a characteristically revealing interview. As a result of this kind of whirlwind production (not to mention filling a select few LP’s with Graves’ actual blood), all eyes have been fixed on them, curious as to what they’ll do next. For now, the answer is the same as it’s likely to always be; subvert expectations.

Everything the band’s released up to “Interference Fits” has been balancing a duality between chaos and vulnerability, always leaning towards the former. “Interference Fits”, likely the upcoming record’s centerpiece, flips the script so adeptly, it’s honestly difficult to imagine the band in any other mode. From the undeniably gorgeous slow-building introduction to the moment of euphoric explosion following Graves’ disarmingly emotive shout of “since when do we say yes to love?!” there’s not a moment here that falls short of utterly, almost frighteningly, captivating. The song’s ultimately one of the best uses of the tension/explosion dynamic this side of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds and full of a transcendental freedom that accompanies the kind of unassailable honesty the band traffics in. That the song’s closing moments are full of feedback isn’t a mistake either; it’s the calm after a storm of genuine self-evaluation- an epilogue to the manic run-through of the Important Questions. In all, “Interference Fits” is easily one of the best songs to emerge from 2014 and even more reason to look forward to Say Yes to Love (pre-order here). Do not miss this.

“Interference Fits” can (and should) be heard over at NPR and a live user-shot performance clip of the song can be seen below (thank you for shooting and uploading, loopyvids).