Piroshka is the latest project of Miki Berenyi, frontwoman of British shoegazers Lush. It’s also a UK alt-rock supergroup: Berenyi is joined by her partner, Moose’s KJ McKillop, as well as their friends, Modern English’s Mick Conroy and Elastica’s Justin Welch.

They revealed Piroshka, named after the Hungarian word for “missile” and inspired by a Hungarian folktale reminiscent of Little Red Riding Hood, in September. Today, they’ve announced their debut album Brickbat, and shared their first ever single, “Everlastingly Yours.”

Although the dreamy guitar pop guided by Berenyi’s unmistakable vocals isn’t too distant from Lush’s shoegaze, Piroshka’s sound is as elusive and heavy as their name. “Everlastingly Yours” hums and shimmers while haywire scuzzy guitar, low-key percussion and the occasional sprays of horn create a damp, foggy soundscape.

The track’s gentle vocals and dreamy haze mask violence; the narrative bait and switch and tongue-in-cheek romantic title make the lyrics (written by McKillop) all the more jarring. As he explains over email, “They’re the violent fantasies your long-departed mother may or may not have had, trapped by her Catholicism in a loveless marriage.”

Berenyi sings about cruelty and violation: “Trample my dreams on the ground/ Tear up my flowers/ And scatter the petals around” — as well as retaliation — “I’m not afraid to reach down inside to something within me/ That gives me the power to rip out his heart/ And shatter his bones with a smile.” The story is cryptic, but the thesis about our society is not. “Nobody here/ Ever escapes/ With no blood on their hands,” Berenyi chants, closing the song.

Listen below.

TRACKLIST:
01 “This Must Be Bedlam”
02 “Village Of The Damned”
03 “Never Enough”
04 “Blameless”
05 “What’s Next”
06 “Hated By The Powers That Be”
07 “Run For Your Life”
08 “Heartbeats”
09 “Everlastingly Yours”
10 “She’s Unreal”

TOUR DATES:
11/27 LONDON, UK @ Lexington **(SOLD–OUT!)**
03/29 MANCHESTER, UK @ Soup Kitchen [www.alttickets.com/piroshka-tickets]tickets
03/30 GLASGOW, UK @ Stereo tickets
03/31 LEEDS, UK @ Brudenell Social Club tickets
04/04 LONDON, UK @ Oslo [www.alttickets.com/piroshka-tickets] tickets
04/05 CAMBRIDGE, UK @ Portland Arms tickets
04/06 BRISTOL, UK @ Rough Trade tickets
04/25 PARIS, FR @ Backstage
04/26 AMSTERDAM, NL @ Bitterzoet
04/27 BERLIN, DE @ Privatclub
04/28 COPENHAGEN, DK @ Vega
05/01 BRUSSELS, BE @ Botanique

Brickbat is out 2/15 on Bella Union. Pre-order it here.

CREDIT: Neil Stewart