Newcomer alert!! Evie Irie is an artist you are going to want to get to know ASAP. The Sydney based singer-songwriter has just delivered one of the most impressive debut singles and EP’s of the year. At the young age of sixteen, Irie is a massive step ahead of her peers. Following her signing to Republic Records, the newcomer went to Los Angeles for a writing trip where her appropriately titled EP ‘5 Weeks In LA’ was born.
‘Bitter’ is the lead single and centrepiece of this strong and near-perfect collection. The bold song will captivate you from it’s opening deconstructed guitar chords and moody vocal delivery. And then the chorus drops and I haven’t been this excited about a hook since’s CXLOE’s ‘I Can’t Have Nice Things’ or Lizzo’s ‘Juice’. The crashing drums add this anthemic touch which will immediately have you wanting to witness it live. “I’m a lot of things but I’ve never been a quitter. Life will let you down, try not to get bitter”.
From there the EP continues her dreamy indie-pop experimentation. ‘Stupid Things’ is a Julia Michaels’ influenced coming of age track while ‘The Optimist’ has an anthemic and positive Rachel Platten touch to it. But I’m always going to be a sucker for a vulnerable ballad and she offers the intimate and appropriately titled ‘Vulnerable’. Reflecting on falling in love and the vulnerability that it exposes she strips it all back and will tug on your heart strings. “I can’t understand how you holding me. Got me losing all control over everything. But something in the air got me suddenly falling harder than I ever meant to”.
Closing the diverse and experimental EP with the DIY ‘Sink Swim’, it has a very fun feel that will have the listener wanting to dance. But in comparison to the rest of the material, it falls short in standing out. As a whole this collection is super impressive and ‘Bitter’ has just indisputably become one of the best songs of the year, so welcome to the world Evie Irie.