Today is an extraordinarily difficult day, but I don’t need to tell you that.
Music is, and will always be, an essential refuge, and today, out-and-proud 3-piece troupe MUNA (Katie Gavin, Naomi McPherson and Josette Maskin) provided that brief but vital escape with their teardrop throbber “Crying On The Bathroom Floor,” off of their upcoming debut album About U due out on February 3.
That title alone just about sums up today, no?
After releasing tracks like “Winterbreak,” “So Special” and “Loudspeaker,” MUNA snuck in towards the very end of 2016 with the brilliant and shimmering “I Know A Place,” a rallying emotional cry dedicated to safe spaces for the LGBTQ community in the wake of the Pulse massacre. The song wasn’t actually written with that horrible moment in mind — actually, the backstory is much different — but it certainly wound up being a perfect fit. (“I know a place / I know a place we can go / Where everyone’s gonna lay down their weapons.“)
That determined chorus alone can, and will, likely inspire tears at a time when the very concept of hope feels exhausting.
MUNA’s latest, “Crying On The Bathroom Floor,” is less universal and more personal; an acknowledgement of one’s own fucked up concept of romance — falling for someone that gives you major grief, but remaining unmoved by their grand gestures of love — and wondering if that’s ever going to change.
“The drugs don’t work and I don’t know why, but when you hurt me I go higher,” they sing, unable to mend their penchant for pain.
“When I’m crying on the bathroom floor / Tearing off the dress I wore, I wonder / If I could never ask for more / If I’m never gonna ask for more from a lover.”
“It’s taking a lot out of me, loving you / There isn’t a lot that I think I can do.”
MUNA just want to want more (moah).
The result is chilly, sublime synth-pop sadness, garnering instant musical comparisons in the comments section to HIAM, Robyn‘s brand of sad disco, and even a bit of the production on Lady Gaga‘s The Fame Monster. (This is an ode to a “Bad Romance,” after all…)
Heartbreak on the dance floor is just about as gay as it gets, and “Crying On The Bathroom Floor” is some incredible, danceable, queer music from MUNA — which couldn’t be more essential than right at this very moment.
About U will be released on February 3. (iTunes)
