London-based artist Edison Miller enters 2022 with a bang with anthemic and defiant indie-pop earworm, ‘Lucid’, for the production of which he teamed up with with Grammy award winning producer Cameron Craig (Tom Grennan, Amy Winehouse, Adele).
The rebellious track features a catchy guitar riff supported by a punchy drums and bass and a chanting chorus, and is about generational defiance in the face of the failings of our predecessors.
Miller describes the track as: “an expression of individualism, empowerment & being who you are unquestionably. Sticking it to the man. A younger generation being blamed by previous reckless generations & emotionally & economically hit by the failings of an irresponsible government.”
The track opens with the central guitar hook, played by Ben Lochrie, and a thumping full-band arrangement with bass courtesy of Pete Hutchinson and Harry Pope smashing the drums, before stripping back to dreamy guitar chords and electronic beat and vocals at the start of the verse. This only lasts for a moment before the band are back with a soupy bass and drum rhythm driving us forward to the chorus, which is a high-energy call-and-response between the guitar hook and the chanting of snappy lyrics:
“We do what we want/ They say that we are dangerous/ Try to prove a point/ But they ain’t never gonna change us”.
The verses are very short, dreamy affairs, drawing stark contrast to the rest of the track in an effective way. This also means that most of the song is repeated, which really helps it stick in your memory after it has finished. The climax of the song features an engaging instrumental section / solo which leads into a quiet build up, that maintains the restless, rebellious vitality and brings us to the last chorus with extra wham.
With its zest and rousing energy, “Lucid” manages to deliver an important message, all the while staying memorable and easy on the ears – the quality of every veritable anthem.
Miller is an accomplished musician, having played in bands since the age of 15, starting out with covers and trying his hand at the odd original or two, but it wasn’t until 2020 that he started working on a new solo project, having featured on a friend’s record. Miller takes his inspiration from nostalgically driven 90’s and 2000’s alternative / indie rock and bands such as Blossoms, Foo Fighters and Two Door Cinema Club.
Stream ‘Lucid’ on Spotify now!
Julia Tache is a musician, social media enthusiast and writer. She releases music under the moniker Jewelia, is the founder of IndieGems and co-owner of Dual Productions.