Label: Chess Club Records
Released: 3rd December 2020
At twenty-two years old, Phoebe Green has her finger firmly on the pulse of her generation’s anxieties and insecurities. Her EP ‘I Can’t Cry For You’ is a testament to owning your imperfections and accepting them as a part of yourself, a lesson which is accented by churning pop beats along with Green’s haunting vocals.
There’s an honesty to these tracks, each of them highlighting faults in Green that listeners can’t help but relate to. Whether it’s her constant struggle for perfection in ‘Golden Girl’ or her insatiable longing to fit in with ‘Reinvent’, Phoebe Green lays her cards on the table to ensure we get to the heart of every sentiment. “If I reinvent myself for every person that I meet, will it make them stick around?” It’s not melancholic or mopey, instead it has a confidence as though Green isn’t dwelling on any of these problems, she’s accepting them.
Her confidence is emphasised in the music, which can flip at the drop of a hat from chart-ready bops to the industrial, mechanical sounds of a future dystopia. ‘Grit’ and ‘A World I Forgot’ have a darker edge, utilising heavier, daunting basslines and synth music reminiscent of new sci-fi soundtracks. Green’s singing is purpose-built for this vibe, adding a ghostly tone to these sinister tracks that makes words melt into one another like fleeting thoughts. There’s a pessimism that feels incredibly appropriate for the times we’re living in. Songs made for introspection that pair excellently with the accompanying bangers.
Phoebe Green wears her heart on her sleeve in this EP, making for an empowering showcase of the things that make us human. Thoughts and feelings that most musicians would dress up in flowery writing or exaggerate into tragic melodrama have been turned into sincere and deeply personal anthems dedicated to imperfection. If you’re looking for self-acceptance in the form of music, look no further than ‘I Can’t Cry For You’.
