In a previous interview, Lady Pills singer/guitarist Ella Boissonnault stated, “no subgenres, I want to be a rock band.” It is often the case that bands are placed into little categories and subdivisions, and always, always compared to one another. But with Lady Pills’ newest album, Despite, the music really speaks for itself—proving that they are, in fact, a rock band, and an unparalleled one for that matter. Each songs swings on a pendulum from soft, introspective ballads to heavy, lo-fi indie rock.
The album opens with one of their slower, teary eyed tracks where Boissonnault compares a previous lover to “secondhand trash,” which is the title of the song. The song explores a relationship that was failed from the start. This is overtly apparent in the chorus—“and I don’t wanna clean up anymore/and I won’t let you stain all the things I’ve made/this was never any more than a chore/from the day we met to the last thing you said/and all I see are your predictable habits and the cigarettes and unwelcome hands/and you’re in her bed again”—all in all, it’s pretty heavy stuff.
“Daddy Warbucks” is a bit more political, and would definitely satisfy the fans of Bikini Kill, especially with lyrics such as “I don’t want an invitation to another one of your pity parties/ they’re boring, you bore me/you contribute to the cycle of a disrespectful culture/and claim solidarity on issues you contribute to.” The lurid nature of the song is inherently juxtaposed with lyrics like “Daddy Warbucks/I give no fucks.”
Compared to “Daddy Warbucks,” the second to last song, “Eat Them” is just as menacing. It’s the most lyrically striking song—explicitly because Lady Pills sing about combatting misogynistic behavior through female cannibalism. The lyrics are suggestive—“they say human tastes best frozen I agree/just bite around the bones/leave the dick for birds to eat/pick my teeth and go in for your heart of weeds/I could puke you up/you and your misogyny.” Although the lyrics are inherently tongue-in-cheek, the song also hits a tone of seriousness with lines like “you’re the type of guy who likes to call me pretty/but when I call you out, you just call me bitchy.”
Despite concludes with a harmonious a cappella between Boissonnault and bassist Allison Dooley, with “The Only One, Pt.1.” The ever so heavy and fuzzy song slows down to a simple repetition of the lyrics “I don’t wanna be the only one you’re saying sorry to.” The Boston trio, Lady Pills, create music that will make you cry but it will also make you dance…and maybe eat a man.