by Patrick Pilch (@pratprilch)
Chicago country-indie-folk-rock project Alayne May is set to release their debut full length Strange Beings on July 15. With the help of Nick Levine (pedal steel), Seth Engel (percussion), Andrew Krull (guitar, bass, banjo) and Will Kyriazis (piano), Alayne May’s warm alt-country approach mixes a tasteful Americana aesthetic with rich lyricism exploring intimate relationships, depression, trauma, and fear.
Alayne May’s exceptional songwriting is in revelatory form on her first two singles, and if “Waveforms” and “For Sure” were any indications, this record is shaping up to be real special. No doubt a choice cut, “Beast” contains a chorus boasting an inescapable hook where May’s twangy vocal intonations and a moving chord progression propel the song into ear worm territory. Both elements are wonderful stylistic and compositional choices behind the singer’s cutting lyricism.
May’s words brim with achingly melancholic reflections on anxiety and trauma on “Beast.” It’s an incredibly emotional song recounting a significant shared experience, and here’s how May ties in the night sky on the second verse:
“Across the river I’d cut up the hillside
To find a bed of warm grass
Where I can watch the stars
The glitter holes poked in a canvas indigo”
That verse is hardly the most stirring moment of “Beast” but it’s the part that made me say “wow.” Strange Beings is out next week on July 15. Check out “Beast” below: