Last year, just when we needed it most, we got hip to Public Order and the Welsh trio’s breakout single “Feels Like Summer”, a wild shot of indie adrenaline that carried us through the casual months. The massive tune wasn’t just Public Order’s breakout track, it was also their debut track, and it was eventually picked up by the FIFA 2022 soundtrack.
This past Friday (February 4) the gents returned with the awaited follow up, and it’s a rave-on banger they’ve dubbed “Fear.” While the British indie-flavored “Feels Like Summer” was all about getting out of the house, not being a sad bastard, and enjoying the good things in life, “Fear” twists the focus in the opposite direction, canvassing our online lives and how we’re perpetually trapped in this digital shit-pit of misery. Swirling around a UK garage beat’s house of mirrors, there’s as much Prodigy here as there is Stone Roses.
“I think ‘Fear’ for us was all about raising the question on how people’s social media followings affected your overall outlook of a person,” offer Public Order. “Like it’s crazy that a number on a profile can change your behavior around said person. It’s all about being wrapped up in that world, and sort of losing sight of reality, really. Mad how a number defines you and your status. It’s like everyone’s ‘famous’ nowadays.”
Like the great NYC club-kid poet James St. James once wrote: “When everyone is fabulous, nobody is.” If “Feels Like Summer” was Public Order getting out and about, then “Fear” is their official invite to come join them away from our screens. Get into it below.