Best Ex released their new EP ‘Good At Feeling Bad’ on 22nd May. This EP dives deeper in to the word of indie pop making for a fun, chirpy listen that’s an essential for any road trip!
Opening track ‘Gap Tooth (On My Mind)’ gets the EP off to a great start with Mariel Loveland’s striking voice and the personal background to the lyrics. Despite the upbeat, sing-along chorus, the lyrics tackle her breakup and her difficult journey in dealing with it, creating an underlying sadness.
By track two you already start to sense a theme. Although the songs sound bright and uplifting, the lyrics have a much deeper, personal meaning. ‘Lemons’ is a classic indie pop song, but it is filled with personal observations about Loveland’s struggles with loneliness and feeling lost. Making these kinds of songs so enjoyable is remarkable, it almost marks the start of moving forward? These messages are definitely ones that will resonate with listeners.
‘Bad Love’ offers a contrasting sound to the previous two tracks, adding an edge to the EP. The lyrics express the struggles of a failed romance and this is portrayed in the more serious tone of the track, this is also explored in ‘Two Of Us’ a soft song containing another anecdote about feeling out of place and broken.
Loveland found ‘Feed The Sharks’ the hardest track on the album to write. She started writing the lyrics just after going public about being a victim of abuse, and as a result suffered outrageous amounts of negativity and an immense lack of support. This is evident in the lyrics which are full of pain and heartbreak, but having said this, the song has twists of empowerment.
Concluding the EP is title track ‘Good At Feeling Bad’. This is a light, summery track about finding peace and happiness in tough times, and is a perfect positive note to end on.