Alongside the announcement of her upcoming sixth album, Oblivion, Alice Phoebe Lou has dropped what she describes as “a loving ode to my younger self” with “Pretender.” The Berlin-based singer-songwriter is still riding high off a three-night residency at Lodge Room in April, which saw her dig into her discography before the release of the new record.
On Oblivion, she gathered songs she wrote for other albums but never made it on their respective tracklists for one reason or another.
“After five band records, I’ve opened my treasure chest of personal storytelling songs that I’ve built up over a decade,” said Lou. “I embarked on the brave and thrilling journey of recording these songs as they are, with love and playfulness, simple and all my own.”
The acoustic guitar at first sets up what sounds to be a song all about longing. Instead, Lou uses the stripped-back approach to let her songwriting speak for itself, with the self-empowering lyrics reflecting on her personality that hasn’t changed despite setbacks and coming-of-age.
The line, “I’m glad I stayed myself / Even though I wanted to be someone else,” especially encapsulates the core of the single, digging deep like a dagger to the heart before being patched up with comfort and acceptance.
From there, Lou’s harmonizing and gentle keys in the background close out a soothing song with the same impact as a full-length project. The fact that “Pretender” was once on the cutting room floor shows that Lou knows how to leave an impact with a single song.
See Alice Phoebe Lou as part of Strongboi open for Men I Trust in LA at the Greek Theatre on Aug. 21, as well as in Anaheim at House of Blues on Aug. 19 and 20.
Visit Alice Phoebe Lou on Instagram and her website to stay updated on new releases and tour dates.
Listen to “Pretender” the new single from Alice Phoebe Lou below!
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