get the power to face the everyday bullsh*t with pop punk diva g matthews’ ‘superhero’
The superheroes on G Matthews’ new album might not spawn billion dollar franchises (or leave billions of dollars in damage in their heroic wake), but that doesn’t make them any less epic. Superhero is a celebration of the ordinary people who face all the bullshit the world has to throw at them and live to fight another day.
With massive anthems like “Keep On Going,” “Leap Of Faith,” and “Not Tonight,” it’s an album that flips the script of alt rock into messages of empowerment without losing an ounce of power. The best songs on the record tend to be the ones that look the darkness straight in the face without blinking. From the dissonant hardcore guitars of “Leap of Faith” to the miles deep groove of “Things You’ll Never Know,” there are nods to classic post-hardcore and emo buried beneath G Matthews’ massive pop melodies. The album’s highlight though is “Choices,” which adds some 8-bit flourishes to a propulsive punk rock song about overcoming anxiety, and I’m just very much here for it.
The Dark Knight memorably called Batman the hero Gotham deserves, not the one it needs. G Matthews’ Superhero is both. We all need some anthems to remind us that the daily fight is worth fighting, and we all sure as hell deserve it.
premiere: journey through the emotional struggle to save a child from conservative parents in emo band blis.’s “lost boy”
Atlanta, Georgia band Blis. is not only changing up the emo genre by putting out some of the best music of the scene, they are also a powerful testament to the genre’s diversity. Aaron Gossett, the band’s lead singer and songwriter, is Black, an identity extremely underrepresented in emo, and his experiences as a Black man are central to Blis.’s latest single, “Lost Boy.
“‘Lost Boy’ is about a time where my son’s mother was pregnant with [my son] Atticus. We were living together when we found out we were going to be parents and she pretty abruptly left me because she was afraid of what her parents would think about the whole situation,” Gossett explained. “Her parents are very religious. Her father is a pastor and owns a church, and her mother runs a Christian school. I’m not religious. For a long time she hid our relationship from her parents because she was afraid they would disown her if they found out she was dating a black guy, much less an atheist.”
The emotional centerpiece of their latest album, “Lost Boy” narrates the years of Gossett struggling to keep a relationship with his son amidst these tensions. Proclaiming, “I don’t want to lose my little boy to your god,” the singer’s incredible vulnerability along with the rousing production will stir your soul.
“The song is about the fear of being taken out of my sons life because of my beliefs,” Gossett says.
Check out the emotional track below!