On their latest single, Just A Number break free from their chains and reach toward the sky. Surrounding is a critique that can give us hope even in the darkest of times.
Freedom is one of the most beautiful things we can experience. Clasped in a society that revolves around structure, the feeling of sheer weightlessness that ensues when we break free from these restraints is unparalleled. On their latest single, Just A Number capture the overwhelming beauty of the infinite after a long struggle against everything that sought to keep them from it.
Surrounding navigates the agonies of modern life within the blistering winds of experimental rock. If Nick Cave jumped on a collaboration with The Killers and Kings of Leon to explore the perils of our society, it would probably sound like the masterpiece Just A Number have brewed up.
Released as part of their debut EP In A Moment, Surrounding is an undeniable home run for the Sydney 5-piece. Boasting nuances of emotional light and dark through their defining command of genre, the track is a compelling narrative of the world we live in, its faults, and the things that can make it so unbelievably beautiful.
“The track was written about feeling boxed in, categorised, and how we all feel like we need to behave a certain way,” the band explain. “It makes us feel stuck, it keeps us in a certain headspace and perspective, which ends up preventing you from seeing bigger and better things for yourself and those around you.”
Surrounding is layered with alt-rock, post-punk, and indie stylings, all combining into the flavourful single laid before us. Unbounded hooks and melodies cast aside all of our anxieties and direct us out into the unknown, while earthy bass reminds us of the structures that still exist and seek to restrain us.
However, rather than seeing their music as a completed entity, Just A Number realise that their work is subject to change, nuance, and impression, making their critique of society even more intricate.
“A lot of the songs we write are feelings at the time & relevant to what we’re seeing happening to ourselves or other people in our lives. Sometimes, meaning forms after we’ve written a song and we reflect and understand where it came from.”
As a debut, Surrounding is immaculate in every way. Poignant, considered, and utterly compelling, we can safely say that we’ll be seeing a lot more from the Sydney band.
Check out the single below:
