Scottish electro-pop trio CHVRCHES have stormed back into the music world with their new single ‘He Said She Said‘.
Featuring a thumping bassline and autotuned vocals, the track is their first release since 2019’s ‘Death Stranding‘. Vocalist Lauren Mayberry said the song was created in a moment of reflection during the coronavirus pandemic:
“Like everyone, I’ve had a lot of time to think and reflect over the past year; to examine experiences I had previously glossed over or deeply buried. I feel like I have spent a lot of my life (personally and professionally) performing the uncomfortable balancing act that is expected of women and it gets more confusing and exhausting the older I get”
Mayberry stated that the song features lyrics that paraphrase things that have been said to her, usually from men. They’re tongue in cheek phrases or paraphrased versions, showing her struggles as a woman working in the music industry. She has suggested that being a woman in the music industry takes a lot of effort, and that channelling these feelings into a song is better than holding the anger inside: “Being a woman is fucking exhausting and it felt better to scream it into a pop song than scream it into the void. After the past year, I think we can all relate to feeling like we’re losing our minds”.
Because of COVID-19 restrictions, the song had to be recorded remotely through video calls. Mayberry and her keyboardist Martin Doherty are both based in Lost Angeles, and their producer Iain Cook lives in Glasgow. With all of the events that have taken place in the past year, CHVRCHES have proven that you don’t all have to be in a room together to record a song as a band. Compared to their last album – 2018’s ‘Love Is Dead‘ – the track’s production is far more abrasive than the radio-friendly sound they created with pop heavyweight Greg Kurstin. Kurstin is best known for his work with Sia, Halsey and Adele. If one positive has stemmed from the band’s remote recording sessions, it’s a return to the unique sound that made their first two albums such standouts.
Free from outside influence and tapping into cultural touchstones such as power and control in the #MeToo era, the band has created a sublime balance between sardonic lyrics and synth-driven production that is sure to delight fans old and new.
