“I wanted to explore the ugly, gross, and acidic parts of my existence,” Alieysha said of her jazzy new pop single PALATABLE.
Alieysha has offered the sonic equivalent of a middle-finger in the form of PALATABLE, a searing new pop single that takes aim at society’s unreasonable expectations of women.
The track opens with the subtle tinkle piano keys which, while angelic on their surface, somehow belie something altogether more sinister.
There’s a jazzy, speakeasy quality to the opening moments of PALATABLE, complete with a slow-going groove and discordant instrumentation. Through it all, it’s Alieysha’s vocals that shine the brightest, rich and sultry in the same vein as Amy Winehouse.
The Adelaide singer’s timbre stretches acrobatically around the slinky beat, which would feel at home both in a 1920s ballroom or a modern R&b studio.
What begins as a tantalising, snare-laden exercise in seduction later transforms into something more commanding, as punchy keys accentuate Alieysha’s syllabic, musical theatre-like delivery.
The honeyed vocals then return as PALATABLE leans into its fairytale styling, with glistening cymbals and the overall feel of a hushed lullaby.
Squeezy heady themes into an otherwise sensual ditty, Alieysha ruminates on her defiance of the norms thrust onto her by society.
“I’m sick of palatability,” she coos on the second verse, “I’m not the villain you turn me into in the story you’re narrating.” Here, the singer reclaims her right to be as unadulterated as she likes, confident in the knowledge that “it takes acid to be like me.”
“PALATABLE is about rejecting limitations and not making yourself ‘palatable’ for society,” Alieysha explained in a press statement. “I wanted to explore the ugly, gross, and acidic parts of my existence.”
It’s a level of lyrical candour — laid bare as if from the pages of her own diary — that you’d expect from an artist 10 years’ her senior, but PALATABLE is doubly impressive given that it marks Alieysha’s sophomore single.
Alieysha’s debut release, Falling for You, arrived in June, with the singer elsewhere set to grace the stage as the support act for MANE’s upcoming show in Adelaide on October 21.
Meanwhile, Alieysha was last year awarded the Helpmann Academy’s Creative Boost Grant, a clear sign that the musician is only just getting started.
Listen to Alieysha’s new single PALATABLE below.
