New Zealand music has always had a special relationship with summer, whether it be at the beach or on the long roadie us kiwis love to take our music with us. So fitting is the debut single from solo artist Ms. Take, Silver & Gold. Created by Lora Thompson from well-rounded rock outfit Cheshire Grimm, Ms. Take has clearly got her own thing going on with this debut release and I was curious to see what it was all about.
The track builds as it moves along, utilising loops and a killer baseline, with the addition of catchy lyrics to give out a full-bodied modern sound. As cruisey as it is when it begins, the lyrics suggest a deeper meaning behind the title, highlighting the emptiness of the material world we all live in. With the opening line 'nothing in life is free' popping the feel-good bubble immediately we learn that mortal possessions actually mean nothing and the importance of life as a whole Ms. Take is clearly making a statement here. Proving you don't need a band or a cool image to get a message across.
Good production and lyrics pull through in a contagious manner putting a price on the meaning of life in such a nice way. You will hear this song in your head a thousand times after just one listen. Simple yet effective with a minimized guitar riff to show off the production as a whole. Well thought out and clever on every level, this single is easily absorbed by the listener and I'm excited to see what's coming next from this established solo artist.
Review by Matt Mutinous
Ms.Take is the solo project of established Kirikiriroa-based musician Lora Thompson (Cheshire Grimm, Empress, Nothing but Hole, Skinny Hobos).
The dystopian Trap Jam Maybe That's Just What I Am is the second official Ms.Take single, a follow up to 2018's Silver & Gold, and was a 2020 lockdown collaboration with Melbourne-based artist F.C.K (lyrics, vocals). The track, also featuring Wellington-based Blair Clarke on saxophone (Raw Collective, Melting Faces), is set for an online release with a lyric video, also made by Thompson in the current lockdown, September 20th 2021.