Los Angeles-based indie-pop band Beginners will release their brand new “white-hot scorcher” (Neon Gold) sophomore EP Pleaser on September 16th. A formidable follow-up to their 2014 self-titled debut which garnered over 4 million Spotify streams, numerous TV syncs, and tour dates with artists such as Walk The Moon and Tove Lo, Pleaser features catchy dance melodies with a rock ‘n roll vigor and clever lyrics ranging from feel good to biting. Today, their new single premiered for their underdog anthem “What We Are”.
The sun-soaked indie pop track is “about my childhood in Indiana,” front-woman Samantha Barbera told Interview. “When I was growing up, my mom struggled financially and we were forced to live off of food stamps. Despite being poor in an otherwise wealthy town, she always instilled an impenetrable sense of confidence in me. I still have vivid memories of riding my second-hand bike around my neighborhood, wearing a giant gold medallion from the 70s that I took from my mom’s jewelry box, feeling like I owned the streets. It’s an underdog anthem about being proud of who you are, regardless of what anyone tells you.”
Pleaser is an ode to the thin line between love and hate. Pulsing singles like “Gangsters or Lovers” and “What We Are” leave no choice but to move to the contagious beats and guitar riffs. The Black Keys meet Yeezus in the tongue-in-cheek revenge ballad “I F*cking Hate You” where Barbera’s bluesy vocal melody delivers sultry lyrics with a violent twist. Gritty dance track “Making Love to the Dead” reveals how passion can turn to pain in a soul-sucking industry designed to churn out marketable hits, while hypnotic closer “Melting Into One” evokes the intoxicating power of young love. At first listen, I also immediately heard notes similar to that of Santigold.
Beginners delivers dark garage rock with a shimmery electronic pop veneer influenced by years of cutting their teeth in the LA punk scene. The band’s sound and lyrics ride a line between glossy and gritty, creating hooks that are at once magnetically catchy and unsettlingly honest. Their single “Who Knows” off their first EP launched the band two years ago resulting in buzz from Rolling Stone, Perez Hilton, Huffington Post, and TV syncs on shows including New Girl and commercials for Ray Ban, Skullcandy, and Miller Lite.
Musically Amusing 