L.A.-via-Paris pop voyagers Pearl & The Oysters – the duo of Juliette Pearl Davis (Juju) and Joachim Polack (Jojo) – return today with a new song “Side Quest” (Stones Throw). The song marks a cathartic release for Polack. In an attempt to counter his worry about processing a family illness, together he and Davis channel his feelings into pure jazz-pop joy resulting in some of the happiest chord progressions and melodies the duo has yet to conjure.

In Polack’s words, he says, “I thought, this has to be the poppiest thing I’ll ever do. I wanted to do that purely as a therapeutic outlet. As it evolved, the lyrics came to embody the expression of estrangement “as we navigate a world that can often feel alien and demented.” 

“Side Quest” is also accompanied by a music video today directed by Ginger Root-collaborator David M. Gutel and Tayler Nicholson, inspired by the surrealism of Salvador Dalí and René Magritte. The psychedelic video is in turn an exploration of the subconscious mind where reality and fantasy collide in a kaleidoscope of vivid imagery.