There is no shortage of aughts-indie nostalgia making the rounds these days, and that style and sound will likely be everywhere in the coming years once we’re fully tired of the ’90s. For reasons that are both obvious and obscure, Stella Donnelly’s new single “Lungs” is transporting us, mentally, at least, to that glorious time, which was a lot more fun than we probably remember it being.
The Welsh-Australian musician’s latest, taken from her forthcoming album Flood, due August 26 via Secretly Canadian, has a certain raw coolness to it, buoyed by the type of bass line and guitar riff that kept us all up very late 15 or so years ago. But true to form, Donnelly also applies her indie-pop gloss along the surface, and the result is a magnetic tune that becomes almost hymnal-like at its core.
“I do love observing human dynamics,” Donnelly says. “Dynamics between old best friends, or dynamics between housemates, or a relationship where the two people are broken up and haven’t spoken in years. I like getting into the mind of someone who we’ve all been at some point.”
Now that’s pure nostalgia. On Twitter, Donnelly tweets that “Lungs,” with its video below, is “an attempt to tell a story of classism and city limits suburbia through the honesty of a child.” Choose your own adventure, and scan through her North American dates, which includes a September 26 stop at Crystal Ballroom at The Somerville Theatre, before the video grabs hold.
Stella Donnelly 2022 Live Dates:
September 11: San Diego, CA , Casbah
September 12: Los Angeles, CA, The Fonda
September 13: San Francisco, CA, Independent
September 15: Portland, OR, Mississippi Studios
September 16: Vancouver, BC, Biltmore Cabaret
September 17: Seattle, WA, Neumos
September 21: Minneapolis, MN, Fine Line Music Cafe
September 22: Chicago, IL, Lincoln Hall
September 23: Detroit, MI, Sanctuary
September 24: Toronto, ON, Longboat Hall
September 26: Somerville, MA, Crystal Ballroom
September 28: Brooklyn, NY, Elsewhere
September 30: Philadelphia, PA, World Cafe Live
October 1: Washington, DC, Songbyrd