Sometimes, the best way to escape the soul-crushing vacuum of your day job is to hole up entirely in the refuge of your other job — you know, the creative one that permits you to scream and launch sharp objects across the room.
And for Boston’s own TIFFY (aka songwriter and instrumentalist Tiffany Sammy), that’s exactly what her new song and live video “I’m Not Equipped For This” does, metaphorically putting a fist through the drywall in frustration.
Released on Tuesday (December 31), the vid was shot and edited by Lisa Eggleston at SUM Studios in Malden, where Sammy rehearses. Sure, it’s still the “soft punk” that we first came to admire on TIFFY’s 2019 EP Fire Sale, but the lyrical punch on “I’m Not Equipped For This” leaves a bigger bruise than ever before, retaliating against the “grin and bear it” cycle of day jobs.
“Inspiration came from the song when dealing with frustrations at managing basically my life at one point,” Sammy tells Vanyaland. “I was working a very demanding job with little direction, and it was frustrating for me. I found myself always saying, ‘man, I’m not equipped for this.’ I didn’t feel like I was doing well or things right and there were no assurances. I remember one day being asked for answers or the best way to do whatever I was working on and just screaming in my head ‘I don’t know, I’ve never done it before.’ Since I couldn’t actually scream, I just had to put on a smile and just say ‘I’m taking care of it.’”
She adds: “Then, instead of helping myself, I would just sorta veg out on social media or Instagram. I always remember Annie Clark saying “the internet is where things go to diem” and I felt like my mindless scrolling on Instagram was like walking through an internet graveyard. Then I’d get frustrated at myself for spending too much time doing that! What a cycle! But now I just have to remind myself that if I’m in an unknown or demanding situation, if I’m coming at it with good intentions, being the best person I can be that day then that is enough. Also, writing songs help!”
Press play on the live video below, and catch TIFFY at O’Brien’s Pub in Allston on January 19 with Scorpio, Lobby Boy, and Tysk Tysk Task.