Stormy-Lou Bring The Noise (And All The Feels) With Their Newest Single, “Falls Away”
By Maximilian Levy
For their first official release through Swirl Records, Kaurna-based indie-rockers Stormy-Lou have today released their newest single, “Falls Away”, a surging, swirling, and searing three-minute cacophony of melancholy and romance that features a rare vocal performance from bassist Alex Taylor. As the first single from their upcoming debut EP “See Ya, Love Ya, Bye?”, “Falls Away” is a memoir to mental health and depression, disguised through driving guitars and unwavering energy.
Characterised by their honest style of songwriting and electric live performances, Stormy-Lou share their experience as young, queer musicians living on Australian soil. Their music is wonderfully sincere and heartfelt, pulling on the heartstrings with intimacy and energy in all their previous four singles. With a selection of well-mixed and composed releases to date, Stormy-Lou have crafted a sonic dynamism that feels both nostalgic and contemporary, conjuring up the grunge and alternative rock sounds of the nineties whilst evoking the emotional misfortunes of 21st-century twenty-somethings.
Unsurprisingly, this musical character stems from the diverse assortment of contemporaries Stormy-Lou draw inspiration from. The group is considerably influenced by local alternative acts such as Teenage Joans, TOWNS, and Oscar the Wild, but major bands like Foo Fighters and blink-182 also come to mind as significant influences during the band’s inception in 2021. Strong Australian voices such as Bec Stevens, Stella Donelly, Julia Jacklin, and Ruby Fields also come into the mix, in addition to regular sprinklings of midwest emo, twinkle-riffs, and math-rock courtesy of drummer Hari.
“Falls Away” is the band’s newest release since their third single, “Impulsivity”, garnered positive attention from Triple J Unearthed in October 2023. Inspired by the sounds of Sly Withers, Camp Cope, and Carla Geneve, the track opens with a droning synth note and a layered, building vocal melody singing Hold on to me, which unleashes an electrifying outpour of fuzzy guitars, hard-hitting drums, and blazing lead guitar blasts. An incisive drum fill introduces the first verse sung by Taylor, who ensures fans that they won’t need to get too accustomed to hearing his vocals on Stormy-Lou tracks.
“Mik will still be front and centre. It just felt right for me to tell this particular story.” – Taylor
Produced and mixed by Lucinda Machin (The Tullamarines) and mastered by Sean Bell (Small Steps Mastering), “Falls Away” impresses as a composition that oscillates in tone and atmosphere, alternating between spirited blasts rich in distortion and softer, mellow sections to accompany the verses. As an element that proves effective in highlighting the melancholic themes of his writing, Taylor sought to craft a song that conjured up multiple emotions in the listener:
“When I wrote the song, I was living alone during winter and emotionally spent. I wanted to write something that hit the feels but at the same time, got people yelling at the top of their lungs.” – Taylor
Such dualism is achieved through the single’s lyrical introspection and the band’s emotionally-driven instrumentation. Lines such as…
I’m feeling rough
I’m feeling weak
I lose my head thirty times a week
…indicate feelings of anxiety and emotional overwhelm as Taylor depicts a struggle with frequently losing control, which is followed by his requests for simple gestures of nurture:
Will you braid my hair, brush my teeth
Fold my clothes and count to three
These are intimate, almost childlike acts of care that accentuate the subject’s vulnerability and desire for support. However, a few lines later, Taylor acknowledges his mental struggles and shows courage by accepting the unpredictable process of life:
And when it falls away
I just sit tight
Let things take shape
And I’ll be brave
I’d also like to call attention to the repeated line, Hold on to me, which emerges as the song’s opening and closing remark and underscores the call for support and reassurance that saturates the entire single. To me, “Falls Away” is a plea for connection and stability, even when circumstances are difficult to understand:
I know it’s hard to see
Just hold on to me
Despite my conjecture, there remains a strong sense of ambiguity between the lines of this song, as Taylor’s writing combines different moods and multiple themes, exploring both mental health and romance. In his words:
“There’s a fair bit of romantic stuff in here which just flew out of my head, but the second verse about my dad I really spent time trying to cook something heavy-hitting. People can read the song however they like and I want them to - if it's romantic to them, that’s dope - but I wrote this about my mental health and I hope people see that personal side too.” – Taylor
To celebrate this newest release, Stormy-Lou will be launching their single at Cranker Halloween (a “Spooky-Lou production) on October 31st at the historic, recently “saved” Crown and Anchor. For this free, Halloween dress-up show, they’ll be joined by The Toothpicks (Gadigal/Wangal Land) and Perfect 50 (Kaurna Land). Furthermore, the best-dressed audience member on the evening will be taking home some free Stormy-Lou merch…so start organising those outfits pronto. Stormy-Lou have been on my own radar for some time now, so it’s a treat to listen and offer my thoughts on their new single. I look forward to their single launch and the promise of more sonic gut punches on the upcoming EP. Once again, it’s my pleasure to check out new music coming out of Adelaide’s uniquely dynamic local music scene. I strongly recommend taking the time to listen to “Falls Away”, in addition to Stormy-Lou’s other great tracks, available now on Bandcamp and all the regular streaming services.
Photos by Georgia Sandford (ig: @georgiasandford_)