Lonely Parade – “Not Nice”

Lonely Parade – “Not Nice”

Lonely Parade are a trio from Canada who got started six years ago when they were teenagers. Now in their early 20s, the band is gearing up to release their next album, The Pits, which was produced by Josh Korody and Greys’ Shehzaad Jiwani. They’ve already shared a couple of tracks from it, “I’m So Tired” and “Night Cruise,” and today they’re sharing a third, “Not Nice.” Grounded by a topsy-turvy rhythm and a nervy call-and-response between the guitars, it’s a song that stems from the anxieties of modern dating. It’s playful but biting, morphing a denigrating comment about a so-called lack of tact into a rallying cry.

“I wrote “Not Nice” when I was desperately trying to get people to pay attention to me,” the band’s Charlotte Dempsey explains, and continues:

I was under the impression I was “romantically cursed” and was desperately seeking affection. I downloaded Tinder on a whim, which was obviously not a great decision. I had a hard time with the disconnect between the online profile and reality. What seems compatible on paper does not mean a real life connection. This left me feeling lonelier than ever and frustrated. I said some harsh things to a boy I’d been talking to after he flaked on me a few times. He told me I didn’t have to be mean – so I reflected on all the times I’d been called mean/harsh/not nice after saying something blunt, but mostly true.

The song bares that out, a bundle of tension and release that feels good while you’re saying it but leaves you reeling from self-doubt afterwards. “I try to wear my heart on my sleeve, but I’ve been strung along before and I can’t do that anymore,” Dempsey sings. “You’re wasting my time and I’m calling your bluff/ I was asking myself, ‘Am I ever good enough?'”

Listen below.

TOUR DATES:
07/18 Windsor, ON @ Phog
07/19 London, ON @ Skydome w/ So Young
07/20 Detroit, MI @ Trixies
07/21 Chicago, IL @ Subterranean (downstairs)
07/23 Cincinnati, OH @ The Comet
07/24 Philadelphia, PA @ House Cat Presents
07/25 New York, NY @ Alphaville
07/27 Boston, MA @ Lilypad Inman *
07/29 Montreal, QC @ La Vitrola *
07/31 Toronto, ON @ Baby G *
* w/ T-Rextasy

The Pits is out 9/14 via Buzz Records. Pre-order it here.

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CREDIT: S Garfield

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