DEBBY FRIDAY - GOOD LUCK
Sub-Pop
Released March 24th, 2023
DEBBY FRIDAY dons reflective moon boots for her futuristic debut LP GOOD LUCK. Released in late March, it gave me a lot to chew on; it feels all-encompassing as it mixes synth-fueled pop, rock, and industrial explorations. It’s fitting for an artist who creates more than music: FRIDAY has released a trilogy of audio-visual plays, NFTs, a short film, and publishes personal musings across a few different platforms that have included horoscope readings and erotica. In her lyrics she cycles through alter egos seamlessly, boasting an inflective delivery that places her as both ingénue and femme fatale.
GOOD LUCK blasts off with its namesake opening track, which serves as a manifesto, alarm clock, and cheerleading squad. FRIDAY is at her most powerful here, saying flippantly, “don’t you fuck it up — get it while it’s hot!” Layers of reverberating hisses and hums snake below each note. But this bravado dissipates in “SO HARD TO TELL” as FRIDAY confronts herself, revealing a hidden vulnerability. The sonic atmosphere becomes cavernous, her voice echoing into the expanse.
At the heart of GOOD LUCK is a vibrant sexuality. FRIDAY knows when to embrace the male gaze and when to deflect it, playing the perfect seductress in “HEARTBREAKERRR”, then taking a deliciously domme turn in the “WHAT A MAN” music video, performing a beheading straight out of a Gentileschi painting. The song is a great showcase of FRIDAY’s dramatic energy, but I was truly won over by Will Ballantyne’s guitar riff, plucked straight from a macho 80s rock hit. Paired with the dark baseline and FRIDAY’s wails of betrayal, it sounds wonderfully subversive here.
GOOD LUCK is co-produced by Graham Welsh of Holy Fuck, who created tons of glitchy details to fill out each song. Some tracks like “HOT LOVE” and “PLUTO BABY” sound undeniably mechanical, but there’s always a ton of range in the vocal delivery. “LET U DOWN” gets deep and dejected as she touches on her failings in relationships, winkingly using the phrase “I’m only a man.” And her spirited confidence peaks on “I GOT IT”, the album’s full-out rave track. It features a forcefully danceable beat, with a low end that sounds terrible in the Toyota Corollas of girls who put on makeup in the visor mirror and hit the curb once in a while. Whoops—I might be projecting a little. But this album was certainly made for those who live a messier lifestyle; it’s much more human than machine.
DEBBY FRIDAY has upcoming Canadian shows in July, playing in Quebec City for Festival d'été de Québec, and opening for Tegan and Sara in Saskatoon and Winnipeg. With her wide-ranging artistic output, I’m expecting an incredible live show—you better show up with your spacesuit on.
- Paige Adrian
