Rachel Gagliardi’s vocal swoons are the perfect soundtrack to your personal one-girl bedroom dance party. Gagliardi may be best known as one half of the self-defined brat-punk band Slutever, but her newest project, Pouty, is a cross-country (Philadelphia and Los Angeles) act that has stolen our hearts. With the help of Cat Park of Amanda X (bass) and Evan Bernard of Manors (drums), the band has released a series of demos titled Take Me To Honey Island.
Pouty marries jaunty melodies tracks with sugary girl group vocals focused around romance, loss and finding your place in the word. The opening track “Moody” captures the feeling of becoming lost within a relationship that unfolds into an anthem of indifference and longing. It is the echoey repetition of “I’m away, you’re the same” that leave the tune swirling around in your brain. Gagliardi’s voice is bright, clear and full of emotive sentimentality. A more wistful track “Sad” offers a significant dose of reverb as Gagliardi shrieks, “How many times will I tell you I feel said today / All I ever wanted is disappearing now.” Suited for the post-breakup scene of a romantic comedy or starring out a window on a rainy afternoon, Gagliardi’s voice sways over a melancholy chord progression with an increasing earnestness. “Sad” needs no more than a few lyrics flowing in trepid breaths to convey earnest regret. Gagliardi’s rambling phrases blossom into insightful observations that are relatable as they are profound. Sometimes you want a song to untangle complex feelings and help you figure out how to get through what ails you. Other times you’re wishing for a simple self-indulgent pop-punk catharsis. For both these moments, Pouty is here.
Stream Take Me To Honey Island below:
