soda blonde releases new single 'holy roses' taken from their soon to be released debut album 'small talk'

The debut album from Soda Blonde may be called Small Talk, but if there’s one thing the Dubliners
do not do, it’s mince words. Out on 9th July 2021 via Velveteen Records, the entirely self-produced album
sees the group reflecting on their twenty-something experiences with refreshingly honest transparency.

“To put it simply, Small Talk is about life in our 20’s,” says Faye O’Rourke, Soda Blonde’s enigmatic front woman. “Every part of us is in here, both subliminally and literally. Lyrically, this record is like a collection of my flaws and insecurities. They’re lingering awkwardly by the bar at a crowded social gathering, waiting to integrate with the wider world”.

The third single from the album ‘Holy Roses' is hot off the heels of singles ‘Small Talk’ and 'In The
Heat Of The Night'. 
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About 'Holy Roses' Faye says "So many of us use rejection as fuel to justify stagnancy or living in
the past. Holy Roses provides me with some closureandI feel it’s one of the most important tracks on
the album. I am directly addressing the people in my past who have hurt me inthis song. The Rose is
symbolic of war and the fleetingness of life and death. It also represents the fall of Christianity, whichI
compare not only to our country’s dying Catholic status but to the oppression I felt throughout my
own personal and worklife. Holy Roses is the moment of reckoning for me, in all respects. I’m letting
go of the people who have hurt me and my oldway of living". 

All four band members (O’Rourke, guitarist Adam O’Regan, drummer Dylan Lynch and bassist
Donagh Seaver-O’Leary) are seasoned musicians, despite their youth. They have been playing
together since their early teens, with their previous band – the internationally renowned Little Green
Cars, whose seminal debut album skyrocketed to number one on the Irish album charts. O’Rourke is
the first to admit that when Little Green Cars called it a day, she felt lost. But a career shift for the
four musicians wasn’t in the cards – and Small Talk is self-evident proof, different than anything the
group have released before, but carrying on its back all the things they’ve learned.

Wholly unafraid to admit her flaws and defiant in the face of the world’s misconceptions, O’Rourke
litters the songs on Small Talk with tension, playing with the reliability of personal experience. While
examining the intricacies of big subjects – religion versus science; good versus bad; fate versus
choice – Small Talk also seeks to unpack O’Rourke’s own conditioning. Self-assuredness grapples
with societal pressures, anger battles it out with contentment, and frustration with a divide – between
personal relationships and the world at large – is ever-present.

Photo Credit: @foambuffalo