Lead singer Meghan Taylor fronts the quintet, in its 10th year, that specializes in CBGB’s style punk mixed with 21st century pop hooks. GIFTSHOP’s dynamic live shows have earned them prime festival slots and a solid following. Musolist Morning Commute calls the Astoria scene makers “One of my favorite NYC bands.” GIFTSHOP’s latest EP, BLUE MONSTER was included in music writer Dave Cromwell’s Best of 2017. Check iTunes, CD Baby and Spotify for BLUE MONSTER and Tarbeach Records for the blue vinyl single. The new EP titled BigInAstoria will be released on February 16, 2019.
Music Review for “We Want You”
A peppy enthusiasm weaves itself through Giftshop’s joyous anthem “We Want You”. Full of a fluorescent color the piece rushes forward in a blurred beauty. Hard to precisely define, the song has a bouncy quality that brings together pop, electro, and EDM into a fantastic swirl. Vocals command in the best way possible as they shout with such tremendous enthusiasm. Hooks reign supreme for the song is an absolute earworm, with a melody that lingers in the memory long after it is over. Much of the track focuses upon the smallest gestures, the slight changes that tilt about in unexpected glorious ways. Great happiness embeds itself deep within the piece’s very DNA, allowing it to feel outright defiant.
Listen to “We Want You”
Hyperenergetic pulses blast the track wide open. Not waiting a moment, the groove starts immediately. By letting the whole thing simply expand into the infinite the tempo feels unstoppable. Truly unhinged everything about the entire track feels tender and outright playful. Everything about the track careens wildly and unexpectedly. Full of a huge number of layers the multifaceted approach gives it a feral quality. Usage of distortion adds to the power of the piece allowing it to build up in a tremendously impressive fashion. Towards the latter half of the track they ensure that the muscular bass becomes truly overwhelming creating something distorting and gorgeous.
Truly cyclical, the hypnotic looping of Giftshop’s “We Want You” puts the listener into a delirious trance.
