“Kicking and Screaming” is the newest single from Boston-based alt-pop mad scientist Daphne Blue Underworld (aka. Loren Ipsum). With a driving drum beat, fuzzy guitars, and throbbing synths, this danceable bop was performed and recorded by multi-instrumentalist Ipsum in her home studio. 

The result is a crunchy, pleasantly DIY aesthetic that underlines the song’s message: an earnest plea for rest in a high-pressure, chaotic world. It showcases Ipsum’s distinct expertise at building a unique sonic world of blissed-out guitar pop and ethereal ambient composition, as they explore the inner space of the everyday introvert trapped beneath the weight of the 21st-century grind.

The forthcoming Memory Palace is DBU’s forthcoming mid-fi masterpiece—an evocative collection of songs that take the form of aural daydreams bathed in a nostalgic VHS glow. Flipping stylistic channels between the guitar-dominated heyday of MTV’s 120 Minutes and the warm synthesized landscapes of PBS’s Nova, Memory Palace explores themes of personal authenticity, courage in the face of change, and the tenuous escapism of complex inner life.

Memory Palace sees release via the Sisters Weird label on April 25. In the meantime, Daphne Blue Underworld will be performing the following live dates:

March 21 at The Square Root, Roslindale, MA

May 1 at Deep Cuts, Medford, MA

Photo courtesy of Sasha Pedro.