A kaleidoscopic alt-pop reckoning, ‘SEVEN’ is Lois’ fierce and susceptible declaration of independence – crafted for anybody rebuilding themselves from the bottom up.
Stream: ‘SEVEN’ – Lois
Some data include glitter and confetti. SEVEN arrives with wind in your hair, goosebumps in your arms, and a quiet defiance in your chest.
There’s a wild freedom in Lois’ voice – like she’s whispering secrets and techniques from a dark-lit nook of a Leeds pub, or shouting her reality into the wind above the North Sea. It’s pop, positive. However it’s additionally a reckoning. And SEVEN doesn’t ask on your consideration – it instructions it, gently however firmly, like a pal who lastly is aware of her price.
Out now by way of Mercury Information, SEVEN marks Lois’ second EP and first as an unbiased artist. A follow-up to 2023’s Unusual Males, the five-track undertaking is a reclamation of id and artistic energy. Written within the aftermath of leaving her label, it captures the uncooked push-pull of maturity, from craving and grief to self-trust and glitter-stained rebirth. Followers of The Japanese Home, Self Esteem, and HAIM? You’re going to need to keep seated for this one.
Lois’ skill to mix different pop with lyrical intimacy has already earned her reward from BBC Introducing, The Line of Finest Match, Notion, and DIY Journal. However with SEVEN, she’s not simply carving a lane – she’s driving it full pace.
Written over two transformative years, SEVEN is deeply private and sharply common. “It was a reclamation of my artistic output, my physique, my voice,” Lois says. “Externally, it’s shoulder pads, brooches, blazers, and a poor try at a Farrah Fawcett hairdo. However internally? It was about regaining autonomy.”
That duality – robust and tender, nostalgic and new – runs by your entire EP. Title monitor “SEVEN” drips with rose-tinted reflection, whereas “Phoenix” explodes with righteous anger. “It jogged my memory of each time I’d felt I needed to make myself smaller to make a person really feel extra comfy,” she shares. “This tune is concerning the common understanding between ladies, the sisterhood, the power we’ve got collectively.”
There’s no filler on SEVEN. From the daring opener “Mine” to the aching remaining word of “April Showers”, every tune feels important to the story. “Love You Higher”, a glistening ‘80s-inspired monitor, provides a gentle vulnerability that contrasts superbly with the unapologetic swagger of “Mine.” Whereas Lois didn’t deliberately construct a story arc, the EP’s sequencing captures the “gentle and shade” of coming-of-age emotion.
After which there’s “April Showers” – the type of nearer that lingers lengthy after the ultimate strum. “It’s concerning the idea of ‘sliding doorways’ – how our lives might be so totally different if we didn’t make the smallest selections,” Lois explains. “The road that also hits too shut? ‘Guess generally it snows in April, I’m nonetheless lacking you in Could.’”
Born in Morecambe and now based mostly in Leeds, Lois’ Northern roots run deep. “It’s probably not a factor for Northern folks to be overly emotional or speak about our emotions,” she says with fun. “I assume songwriting was one of many solely areas I felt secure to try this.” You’ll be able to really feel that grit-meets-heart in each lyric, each word.
Influenced by artists like Self Esteem, Large Assault, Little Simz, and (at all times) Prince, Lois blends alt-pop with a cinematic depth that feels constructed for each dance flooring and late-night practice rides. Dwell efficiency is her lifeblood – her favourite reminiscence so far? Taking part in Manchester Albert Corridor. “The sound of 2000 folks… it simply utterly blew me away.”
Lois isn’t simply dreaming – she’s declaring. “I’m manifesting Glastonbury 2027,” she says with out lacking a beat. Till then, she’s staying grounded, pushed by the mantra: Why not me?
And if SEVEN is any indication, the reply to that query is obvious: it is her. That is an EP for anybody rebuilding themselves from the bottom up. For anybody who’s been underestimated, silenced, or reshaped by others’ expectations. For anybody craving music that meets them within the messy center – and invitations them to remain.
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:: stream/buy SEVEN right here ::
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RAPID-FIRE WITH LOIS
Atwood Journal: What’s one lyric you would like you wrote?
Lois: “She is the tear that hangs inside my soul without end.” – Jeff Buckley
The tune that at all times makes you cry?
Lois: “Free” – Deniece Williams
Final album that ruined you (in a great way)?
Lois: In Rainbows – Radiohead
If SEVEN had been a movie, what would its title be?
Lois: Pay Consideration to the Indicators
One tune from SEVEN that felt like remedy?
Lois: “Love You Higher”
Line from SEVEN that also hits?
Lois: “Guess generally it snows in April, I’m nonetheless lacking you in Could.”
Most shocking factor you’ve realized about your self currently?
Lois: I like mushrooms. Bizarre.
A phrase or mantra you retain coming again to?
Lois: Why not me?
First artist you ever obsessed over?
Lois: Beyoncé
One factor you’d inform 16-year-old you?
Lois: It WILL get higher!!!!
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