Grace Ives

Brooklyn-based musician Grace Ives announces her new album, Janky Star, out June 10th on True Panther/Harvest, and shares an irresistible new single/video, “Lullaby.” Janky Star is at its core about devotion. Three years on from 2019’s 2nd, Janky Star sees Ives take a wider-angle camera lens to her life, and consider the care and attention it takes to find both self-acceptance and self-preservation in a world that never stops spinning. Throughout songs that are still full of punchy synths and unconventional rhythms, Ives uses the quiet spaces in between to honestly reflect on her ongoing struggle to find stability and happiness.  Touching on sobriety, overdoses, and the desire to escape from the realities of modern life, the record also focuses on the rewards of slowing down, and finally finding a home for herself in the ever-shifting world.

Although her music has always been steeped in sometimes claustrophobic direct surroundings, she teamed up with co-producer Justin Raisen (Yves Tumor, Charli XCX) in Los Angeles to consummate Janky Star’s expanded vision. Still only in her mid-twenties, the record sounds like Ives grown up: through the ten sophisti-pop tracks, there’s more deliberate space that lends breathing room to her most vulnerable, exposed songwriting yet.

“Some people go through a version of something called rejection therapy, where they ask for things they simply can’t have,” Ives recounts. Is it too much to ask to have it all? It’s a relatable question that Ives considers throughout Janky Star, navigating her own sense of purpose as the globe continues to turn. Astrological references pepper the album, and the title itself is a guiding light throughout, a vantage point that remains constant throughout all the seismic shifts in Ives’ life. It also is a manifestation of Ives herself: “Everyone has a shitty star tattoo/stick n poke, that’s never perfect, or is rough around the edges. A beautiful thing to think about is that stars on earth look like blobs but in space really defined structures.”

Today’s “Lullaby” ends with Ives musing: “it’s nothing to be sad about / just something I’ve been thinking about.” This quiet introspection holds the key to Janky Star: the headrush of life in the fast lane, left behind for something altogether more rewarding. “Lullaby”’s accompanying video, captures Ives’ magnetic eccentricity via a romantic horse girl cosplay conceived of and directed by Logan White. Ives elaborates on the track: “Living the same day over and over again. This song is about the comfort and anxiety that comes with isolating yourself. Homebody’s anthem.“

The simple fact of existence contains multitudes, and the very act of surviving can be the biggest achievement of all. Janky Star proves that while Ives might not have it all figured out just yet, every song feels like a poignant heartbeat where although the future isn’t guaranteed, each step forward is more than enough.