It’s easy to lose yourself in the earnest, raw bedroom pop of adelaidethegirl. She’s a bona fide DIY producer, gigging across Eastern Australia for the past five years (even playing at Brunswick’s Ringo Barr) and opting to collaborate with local creatives who’ve helped bring her complex vision to life. After living in Australia for the past two years, she’s relocated to Prague, which coincides with the release of her latest album All My Friends.
Even if you haven’t heard of adelaidethegirl, you’ll be able to uncover traces of alternative pop inspirations in her music. Early PJ Harvey is a strong influence—adelaidethegirl similarly balances grimy industrial sounds with her strident, bewitching vocals. Meanwhile, the voluble delivery of her words resembles Fiona Apple. Among the artsy guitar distortion and filthy synths is adelaidethegirl’s voice, woven through those musical crevices like Hiatus Kaiyote’s lead singer Nai Palm, twisting and turning to create contemplative, serpentine soundscapes.
All My Friends is a beaut for anyone with those musical tastes, so to hear them distilled on a single release is wonderful. The record also contains a cohesive lyrical direction: across 10 songs, each explores the author’s friendships both literally and figuratively. Adelaidethegirl sings about the dysfunctional aspects of her relationships, like jealousy and paranoia (she condemns the subject of ‘Corporate Woman’: “She’s the suspicious type / Filled with vicious pride”), but also explores the admiration and ambition of platonic love (she labels the subject of ‘My Latest Experiment’ as “[her] angel … Here to be [her] saviour”). The album is an invitation into her mind and how she navigates the people closest to her.
The way adelaidethegirl brings you into her headspace is like watching dark cabaret, where attendees are seated attentively as she elegantly dances to eerie music, putting all her unguarded reflections on the table. ‘Charon’ is the most PJ Harvey-esque, where abrasive guitars underpin her chic, unceasing delivery of a mysterious male figure who “writes songs like [her]” and “can see what [she] concede[s]”. ‘The Astronomer’ is a more coherent display of adelaidethegirl’s vision, with its surreal music video by Gadigal/Sydney-based artist Miranda Jayne depicting dancers in celestial masks designed by Naarm-based artist Milky Plug Kid. The tiptoeing track conveys cosmic connection and platonic love, where the narrator cherishes their friend’s talents.
‘My Latest Experiment’ and ‘Corporate Woman’ steer into heavier beats, indicative of their lyrical content—the former’s introductory lines “She’s my angel … She’s here to save me” reveal the intense appreciation adelaidethegirl has for some of her peers. Then, the woozy, wavering ‘Little Girl With A Gun’ hints at the discord between the narrator’s concession to their friend in their controlling friendship: “She says I need to think more positively / Or else the power lines will fall down and paralyse me”.
As the record winds down with the chiming ‘Siren’, it’s clear that All My Friends requires you to sink your teeth into it. Adelaidethegirl’s unorthodox laments contain many true words to parse through patiently, so understanding and entering her stories feels incredibly rewarding.
All My Friends is available to listen to now on all major music platforms. Keep up to date with all things adelaidethegirl on Instagram.