Only Child - "Defeater"

Photo by Jillian Vaccaro

Boston singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Christopher James Martin is releasing music under the name Only Child. This music is dscribed as "queer Boston synth pop," and his new single under that moniker is stellar. "Defeater" is as much fun as the queer Boston synth pop description sounds. It's an upbeat synth heavy pop song that is humorous without being jokey, despite the song being about heartbreak. Of course, since it's a synth heavy song "Defeater" is going to get compared to a lot of 80's music, but Only Child doesn't sound entirely like an 80's throwback. It's oddly cinematic and ridiculously fun. Seriously, if you can't enjoy this one you truly need to take a long hard look at yourself.

Christopher James Martin says of his new single:

“‘Defeater’ is kind of a continuation of the themes covered in ‘Don’t Call Me BB’, about being infatuated with someone you shouldn’t be, with the added twist being, ‘you tell yourself you know better, but you’re still falling for it.’ In some ways, I feel like ‘Defeater’ distills what I was trying to do with this EP and this whole project, both sonically and lyrically, in one song.”

You can listen to "Defeater" below. Srs One is due for release in 2023. For more on Only Child, check out the artist's Facebook and Twitter.