“It’s a suicide note written for the radio. Well intended, but sharply manipulative.”
The Queen’s Head’s Joel Douglass of their new single ‘Today.’
The Queen’s Head, formed of childhood friends and co-frontmen / songwriters Joel Douglass (also on guitar) and Tom Butler (also on bass) alongside Eleanna Amias (synth), Robbie Cottom (keys) and George Thompson (drums) have a fixation on exploring in-between sonic spaces. The result is an idiosyncratic sound that traverses pop, post-punk, post-rock, new-wave, disco, and spoken word. Its dancey and synthy with a masterful blend of hyper-pop melodies against grandiose use of harmony and above all, intriguing narratives in the lyrics, part conceptual, part personal, which anchor it all.
New single ‘Today‘ was initially inspired by a real-life letter, from Tom to Joel, entitled “To a Fallen Friend“. Tom expands:
“In it I detailed the sense of betrayal I felt at the hands of his depression, and the selfish act of withdrawal which is so often a symptom of that terrible disease”.
The track, which tells the story of the two frontmen Tom and Joel and their respective relationships to suicide, explores sensitive subjects candidly – debilitating depression, failure to oneself, failure to others, the loss of loved ones – yet envelopes the listener in a story which is heartbreaking but ultimately captivating. The Titanic EP retains the theatric, genre-melding abilities of The Queen’s Head’s early releases but with a darker influence in the likes of Death Grips, Talking Heads, 100gecs and Wagner. An intriguing and prospect indeed.
The video for ‘Today’ was filmed by the band, edited by Tom Butler and produced by Joel Douglas alongside Andy Savours and is described by Tom as “A saccharine, but summative, introduction to the Titanic EP.” It’s a collage of melancholic thoughts and notepad scribbled ideas encompassing a bromance or perhaps romance, a coming-of-age indie film aesthetic, melancholy, a twist, a walk into the sunset. Tom expands on the creation of the video:
“I think we achieved the brief I set out, a video melancholic by its form and befitting of ‘Today’ . My character reminisces about a seaside trip with Joel, seen through a dreamy montage of friendship captured on camcorder. In the present, in an apartment stressed in the brown and orange austerity of the 70s, my character sits in contemplation, haunted by a Joel-shaped figure, stark by its relative fidelity. A story of heartbreak and betrayal is revealed, exploring basic tension of the song – the disjunct between a loving friendship and a darker reality.”
The Queen’s Head Live Dates
5 April – Paper Dress Vintage, London
Additional dates to be announced.
For more information on The Queen’s Head please check their instagram and youtube.
