Watch The ‘Overtime’ Video On Flavorwire!
As U.S. Girls, Meg Remy’s music is a long-running, art-driven study in bold contrasts.
Her earliest Siltbreeze recordings established a precedent; how far can ‘pop’ songs be pushed into the red before they cease to be recognized as pop? Her records for European labels, Kraak and FatCat furthered her obsession with duality. They effortlessly blend disparate parts like the sweet and the tough, the feminine and the abrasive, the immediate and the opaque. Progressive meditations, they display what it means to be a soul singer (and a woman) in the new millenium.
Her newest release, Free Advice Column EP, may be her clearest statement yet. While certainly her most commercial-sounding recording, it promises also to stand among her most vanguard and original efforts; a dynamic as full of contrast as they come.
Working with Canadian hip hop producer, Onakabazien (their first collaboration was the imaginative, acclaimed reworking of Brandy & Monica’s ‘The Boy Is Mine’, on U.S. Girls on Kraak), Remy has concocted a set of classically-structured, narrative gems. In the process, she ups the sonic ante with her manipulation of Onakabazien’s blasted beats. In the the past decade, many have striven to emulate the exuberance and liberation of the girl group era, but few have achieved a sound as modern as Remy’s in the process.
Splitting the labour between them, Remy was able to concentrate her energy on lyric writing and her gift for precise and hypnotizing vocal melodies. Onakabazien, meanwhile, continued to refine his take on psyched-out, deeply heavy beats. The fusion is a potent and energizing one from two artists operating at the height of their talent.
Evoking inspirations as varied as the Supremes and M.O.P, the Free Advice Column EP promises to be among the most original releases of the year. It invites the growing audience for U.S. Girls to start salivating over the prospect of a full-length collaboration with Onakabazien.
Listen To “Free Advice Column” On Brooklyn Vegan
Watch ’28 Days’ Video On Rookie
“Free Advice Column” Track Listing:
1. Overtime
2. 28 Days
3. Incidental Boogie
4. Onakabazien – Disco 2012 (feat U.S. Girls)
Shows:
Sept 27th – Brooklyn, NY @ Death By Audio *
Sept 28th – Philadelphia, PA @ West Kensington Ministry
Oct 1st – Pittsburgh, PA @ VIA Fest
Oct 16th – Brooklyn, NY @ Knitting Factory (Panache CMJ Showcase) #
Oct 17th – Brooklyn, NY @ Silent Barn (Calico Corp / Panache Booking Present) ^
Oct 24th – Sainte-Therese, QC @ Cha Cha
* w/ Spacin’, Onakabazien w/ DJ’s Slim Twig + Pete Swanson
# w/ Yamantaka // Sonic Titan, Jacco Gardner, Saint Rich, ARP, & Slim Twig^ w/ Slim Twig, Home Comfort, Zacht Automaat, & Gem Trails
% w/ Solids
Praise For U.S. Girls:
“Remy’s expressive singing sounds both stirring and exultant, inspiring chills and smiles in equal measure” — Pitchfork
“U.S. Girls mastermind Meghan Remy isn’t going to let you experience a piece of her art without kicking in a little brainpower” — Spin
“The result of all this reinvention is a brief but unhurried, moody album that brings the hedonistic tendencies of glam and the obsessive undercurrent of Spector’s girl group anthems to light.” — Consequence Of Sound
“For this one, she collaborated with Canadian hip hop producer Onakabazien to gently twist her warped girl groups sounds into new territory. Mind you the three tracks still sound like a ’60s radio broadcast that have been beamed into space and refracted upon reentry, but a more beat-driven focus makes this pretty compelling.” — Brooklyn Vegan
““Overtime,” a collaboration with Canadian hip-hop producer Onakabazien, zeroes in on the little things in old recordings like “Heatwave” or “Be My Little Baby” that really feel the most endearing: the fleeting shrillness of a voice, a particular metallic clink to a piano, a sort of sunken quality to the drums.” –FADER
