One definition of ‘ugly’ according to Webster’s Dictionary is “offensive to the sight.” Another is “likely to cause inconvenience or disgust.” It’s that which Straight Girl channels with their second single.
Their first track following their rebirth under this new knowingly ironic moniker, ‘Ugly’ has Holly Readman pounding cheap (that’s a compliment) analogue synths to seek catharsis in their grinding, dirty, thumping ‘grave rave’.
“I grew up being painfully ashamed of my own singing voice, always shrinking under jealous shadows of the girls in my class who were ‘naturals,’ hearing over and over that my voice was ‘ugly’. It wasn’t until I realised that what they were actually saying was that it existed outside the standards for normality, that I began to look at the word ‘ugly’ not as an insult but as an appreciation of uniqueness, and turned it into a statement of pride.”
It’s a track that layers sound upon sound, capping off each vocal segment with pit-friendly electronics. But it’s the last third, after Readman’s vocals are rendered distorted and inaudible, oppressed under the weight of its own imperfections, that the track’s energy truly lifts off, and it absolutely slams.
‘Ugly’ is set for release on Friday 13th September, and a launch party will follow on Saturday 14th September at CHUNK in Leeds – more info can be found here.
Straight Girl is playing the following live dates, this Autumn:
Saturday 19th October – Yes, Manchester (w/ Team Picture)
Sunday 20th October – EBGBS, Liverpool (w/ Team Picture)
Wednesday 23rd October – The Cookie, Leicester
Thursday 24th October – The Library, Oxford (w/ Flirting.)
Saturday 26th October – The Victoria, London
Sunday 27th October – Mother’s Ruin, Bristol
Wednesday 30th October – The Cumby, Newcastle (w/ Team Picture)
Thursday 31th October – The Studio, Hartlepool
Friday 1st November – Belgrave Music Hall, Leeds (w/ Team Picture)
