Siichaq - "Project 3"

Photo by Tyler Carty

Atlanta's Siichaq (aka Kennie Mason) has a new single out that's filled with some glorious vintage 90's sounds. "Project 3" fits into the whole modern indie rock meets indie pop sound that we can't seem to get enough of the past few years. A lot of these artists get lumped in with the grunge label, but Siichaq actually is... kind of. The type of guitar noise present in "Project 3" is more akin to bands like Sonic Youth (who also got lumped into grunge at one point) that Alice in Chains or Soundgarden, especially since the noise lasts almost the entire sound. Plus, Mason's vocals have that perfect slacker style, which tends to be both 90's and 20's. There is also some sounds that could be guitar work but kind of sound like record scratches, which along with the song's laid back vibes gives it a Sonic Youth meets Portishead meets Liz Phair sound, and I don't know how to make you want to listen to "Project 3" more.

Siichaq says of her latest single:

"Project 3 is a song about feeling desperate and resentful. I wrote this during a period of waiting. There’s that saying, 'hurry up and wait…' That’s what it feels like to make music most of the time, and the stalling is far more uncomfortable for me than the hurrying. It’s in the quiet moments that scare me, and I lose confidence in my art or my persistence because there’s no tangible work to be done, nothing to ‘produce’. I find myself, embarrassingly, begging the universe for a chance to earn my spot in the world–begging for a chance to succeed in an industry that’s chalked full of people with more talent, skill, drive, more everything than me. It always feels pathetic when I’m doing it, but I do it anyway. I resent the universe for not giving me signs, I resent the periods of stagnation, I resent the silent forces that pull us blindly through our lives.

"And so, I beg. I don’t know if it works, really, but sometimes it feels good to just tell the universe what you want. Please, please, please, don’t make me stumble blindly into the future, please, please, please, tell me I can do it."

You can listen to "Project 3" below. CATCHER is due out August 8, and is available to pre-save here. For more on Siichaq, check out the artist on Instagram.