Following their debut EP, Dusk Of Punk, LA-based grunge band Goon approaches their latest EP release, Happy Omen, experimenting within the parameters of their genre. Where Goon has shown strength in their lo-fi fuzz, they have also wandered into more acoustic territory, first with their cover of R.E.M.’s “Let Me In,” and now with “She.” As if dissecting the grunge rock sound they’ve established, “She” provides an open window to Goon’s poeticism. Vocalist and guitarist Kenny Becker explains:

I wrote this song in 2012 following a breakup and a realization that I had already begun to lose my faith. The song got shelved, but in 2016 when we began recording new tunes, it reemerged and we tracked it. Upon completing the song, I was actually in the midst of another breakup, and was kinda losing my mind with sad and lonely energy. The lyrics took on a renewed meaning. I also had the idea for the song’s ending then, with the weird voices and sorta upbeat-melancholy jam. That ending became a kind of wordless meditation on all the feelings I was having at the time.

Becker also had this to say about the theme of the upcoming Happy Omen EP:

In June of 2016 we began recording a new batch of songs, with the intent of creating an LP. Which we did, but when reflecting on what we had created there was this feeling that it wasn’t quite fleshed out enough. So that prompted a second phase of recording where we re-recorded some songs from those first sessions and continued down the rabbit hole of experimentation for a little while. At a certain point we realized some of the results from this experimentation actually worked really well together which resulted in this EP.

To me, these songs share less of a proper “common theme” and more of a common feeling. That being said, four out of the six songs were written in the wake of a breakup, so if there’s a lyrical theme, it could maybe be that. But this is definitely not a “breakup record.” A lot of the lyrics are also about similar subjects as on our previous EP. Things like God, doubt, and my childhood. What I like most about this collection of songs is the shared melancholy, longing, introspective vibe.

Listen to “She” below where you can also hear previous single “Chaka.”

Happy Omen EP tracklist:

01 “Chaka”
02 “She”
03 “A Window Outside”
04 “Ten Tables”
05 “Jalama”
06 “Push Me”

Happy Omen is out 10/30. Pre-order it here.