SINGLE REVIEW: EMILIA QUINN - DIRTY LITTLE LIES

The countdown to Emilia Quinn's second album is well under way, and expectations are sure to be heightened as "Dirty Little Lie" hit the airwaves. We know that Emilia can make sparks fly when she rocks out, however on this track she just takes her foot off the accelerator slightly, summons her inner Steve Nicks and produces the sort of sound that is pure pop perfection.

The opening is a sweet summery strum, but the tale being told over the melody is a little darker. Lyrically it somewhat follows the theme of the previous single, "Does She Know?" but comes at it from a different angle. It addresses the eternal conflict of having low self esteem and letting yourself effectively be abused while at the same time craving the attention that it brings even when it ultimately leads to unhappiness in a seemingly endless cycle.

"My heart is a desert

And you are the sun

You keep me guessing

When rain’s gonna come

Your name’s like poison

Hanging off of my tongue

But I can’t lie, I can’t lie It has me coming undone"

Emilia's vocals have just the right levels of disdain and frustration,

The chorus is the sort of direction that feels a natural fit for Emilia, controlled, assured as the pace picks up, given an urgency from the crisp percussion sound. The lyrics play the complex dynamics out perfectly, the first half, full of optimism that this time it is for real, while the second half the disappointment and the sad conclusion reached.

"You don’t wanna give the wrong impression

But your fingers leave them on my thigh

And I will just keep on wishing

One day you’ll do me right

I don’t know why I keep coming

When you just push me aside

Maybe I like Maybe I like

Being your dirty little lie"

The difficult balance plays out again in the second verse, and seeks to put into words why history keeps repeating itself.

"No amount of gold

Could make me stay

But when I’m broke

You’re just the right place

Weak at the knees

When you kick me away

I wanna scream

But you’re kissing my face"

John W Doyle also manages to channel a little Lindsay Buckingham into his guitar solo over which Emilia delightfully coo's.

The final verse is the most brutally hard hitting, there is no upside and finds Emilia at an emotional nadir - it ends with the lines

"Your scent on my skin makes me feel cheap

Why do I keep giving myself away for free?"

There's no denying it is a mini classic, drawing inspiration from, yet not becoming a watered down facsimile of Fleetwood Mac. Wrapping up a complex concept in a divine tune, that maybe people will not immediately totally discover, as the tune has seduced them into submission.

#TEAMw21 heartily recommend you go hit Dirty Little Lie by Emilia Quinn - DistroKid and Presave

"Dirty Little Lie" is available August 15th.