Angela Perley – “Don’t Look Back Mary”

Chris Connor

Angela Perley – “Don’t Look Back Mary”

Chris Connor

Angela Perley has been making tunes for over a decade now. In fact, our own Chris DeVille reviewed one of her shows way back in 2011. In the time since, she’s released played on bills alongside acts like the Flaming Lips, St. Vincent, and Randy Newman. Perley is gearing up for the release of her third full-length LP, 4:30, which is named for the time she goes to bed. Definitely a night owl.

“Don’t Look Back Mary” is gorgeous in composition, and swings with a slow, grooving snare bump. Sprinkled high hats when combined with a sliding guitar riff create this illusion of an expansive horizon. Vocally, it’s a slow croon, but a stepwise motion on the shimmery strings adds just the right amount of gravity to the lyrical content. Here Perley is with more details on the track:

“Don’t Look Back Mary” is based on a woman who is strong yet broken, vulnerable and child-like at times—one of those people you never can quite read but you know has some stories to tell and a past life that drives them and carries over into their current situation. Mary is mystic and has gypsy-like energy, so I wrote this song more in the vein of a poem at first, which really gave it a different vibe than the other songs on the record.

Check out “Don’t Look Back Mary” below.

4:30 is out 8/2. Pre-order it here.

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