Oh Joy are set to release a new EP entitled Good Grief on June 8th. The band, who jokingly describe themselves as “mope rock” follow up two critically acclaimed singles that came out last year. The miserabilist tag is something the band embrace but that melancholy is equally drenched in humour and their intention is to subvert the depressing rock band stereotype. The video for lead single Cab Sad perfectly sums up that over-the-top melodrama juxtaposed with knowing wit.
Previous single So Swell was likened to Frightened Rabbit by The Line Of Best Fit. A fitting comparison considering both band’s playful, almost ironic gloom. The new EP follows a similar path but these new songs are fuller, more accomplished, more adult.
First single Cab Sad is a song about falling in love and how it can make you feel like a pathetic mess. Ollie Moyles, the lead songwriter wrote the song while experiencing relationship troubles. “It was written at a time when it felt as though I was being swallowed up by a hole, it is a love song about hating love” explains Moyles. The lyrics attest to that feeling of helplessness we can all relate to:
I’m biting my nails now…I’m back in that hell now.
Oh Joy take inspiration from the likes of Leonard Cohen, Elliot Smith and Father John Misty. Artists who can communicate pain with humour and a knowing nod to the ridiculousness of it all.
Good Grief is out June 8th
