Chances are a decent amount of people woke up this morning feeling pretty fucking underwhelmed by yesterday’s Valentine’s Day festivities. Maybe it’s his fault, maybe it’s her fault, maybe it’s their fault; who knows, who cares, who really has time for any of this anymore? Providing new kind of soundtrack for a collective emotional shrug is rlyblonde, the Brooklyn-based project of multi-disciplinary artist Carina Allen, who hit the streams on the Hallmark holiday with an infectious an instantly-memorable debut single called “Fantasy.”
When rlyblonde bemoans being “back wearing my heart on a screen”, we can feel the track’s gritty alt-rock riffage slice through all our prior expectations as it dances around a towering pop melody. We know how this story ends, for sure, but for the photographer-turned-musician, perhaps a new chapter is about to be written.
“‘Fantasy’ is really about being frustrated with dating culture and the performances that women (especially women dating men) have to put on, almost out of necessity, until it hits a point where it all becomes too draining,” writes rlyblonde. “At the same time, it’s also a song about the power of women, the power of illusion and seduction, the power of confidence, and the power of being anonymous.”
The music video for “Fantasy” debuts this Friday night when rlyblonde makes her first live appearance at Heaven Can Wait in New York City. Make it a date night — at your own peril — and get on the list through the RSVP.