New York-via-Detroit singer Alex Winston makes the kind of big, meticulously crafted pop songs that sound anthemic without coming across as soulless. Her idiosyncratic vocals have earned her comparisons to the likes of Joanna Newsom and Lykke Li, placing her in the grand tradition of post-Kate Bush alternative pop singer-songwriters. On 2012’s King Con, that quirk also emerged in her lyrics, where she took colorful fringe figures like Elvis impersonators, Amish teenagers, and polygamists as her inspiration. On her new album, however, coming this spring via 300 Entertainment, she turns her focus inwards. “I’ve never been comfortable writing songs about myself,” she explains. “It’s always been easier for me to tell stories, so I wasn’t used to being as vulnerable, but I had to be during writing. I felt like I was doing myself a disservice not making the album personal because I’ve had a few tumultuous years.” First single “Careless” is about “being uninhibited and stepping outside of myself,” says Winston. “I want to be careless / Why can’t I be careless with you,” she sings in the thundering chorus. Listen below.

“Careless” will be available 12/9 on iTunes, Spotify, and Google Play, and it’s getting a 7″ release on 2/10 b/w “We Got Nothing,” which you can preorder here. Winston’s also playing a show at Neon Gold’s Popshop 1/22 at NYC’s The Westway.