The “Dancing on the Wall” Preview
Thoughts on the MUNA Album Preview and Q&A Session at Rough Trade East London
I had placed my name on the waitlist for tickets to the MUNA album listening party and Q&A expecting to never leave the list. However, the minute I got the notification there were tickets available for me the night before, I hit confirm without hesitation.
I had seen MUNA perform at All Things Go in D.C. in 2024. They were the last minute replacement when Chappell Roan cancelled at the festival. They were incredible live and the most perfect surprise guest. Their stage presence was electric and the live performance takes their songs to the stratosphere. Not to mention, the energy of the crowd was just as vibrant. By the end of the first song, I knew I had to see them again. They are releasing their new album in May after a 4 year gap. During this gap, their lead singer, Katie Gavin, put out a solo album and went on a solo tour. She also went on tour as an opening act for Lucy Dacus. I also saw Katie Gavin on both her personal tour and on Lucy Dacus’s tour and really enjoyed her album, What a Relief. It is distinct from MUNA and lends itself much more to the folksy singer-songwriter genre than the synth pop of her larger band.
Snagging tickets last minute was such a welcome surprise and I eagerly trekked out to East London. The event was held at the flagship Rough Trade by Whitechapel. Rough Trade has been a record store and record label based in London since the 1970s. It played a significant role in the punk, DIY, and independent music movement and keeps the tradition alive today. I had been to the Rough Trade in Rockefeller Center in New York but this location makes that store look like a closet. This location can fit close to 300 people. It’s essentially a warehouse of records—what else could you want!
They filed us into the building and we stood amongst aisles of records in front of a small stage. We first listened to 3 unreleased songs off the new album, Dancing on the Wall. The songs were genuinely fun and the 80’s synth inspiration is apparent. I just know I will be absolutely blasting the songs come May. But, the Q&A left me really excited to get to dig into the album lyrically when it comes out. I’ve always known that MUNA, as artists, are very intentional about what they write and how they write it. They’ve also been outspoken in their politics and activism. However, hearing them talk about their music live made it all click for me. It’s so easy to forget the intention behind their music because the music is just so fun. The tendency is to dance rather than to take in the message. In that way, MUNA can really hide some meaningful lyrics into their work. Not to mention, they are incredibly well-studied and academic.
For example, the first song they played for us was called “It Gets So Hot”. The song is so fun. It builds and builds until an insane drop. It’s upbeat and layered with synth and texture and reverb. During the Q&A, Naomi McPherson, who produced all the songs on the album, described it as the thesis of their work and the album. Not just because the song sonically fits into the existing discography of the band, but because it synthesizes the idea that the album is meditating on. The rest of the band, Katie Gatvin and Josette Maskin, chimed in and added to this idea that the external world, physically, politically, and socially, influences your mental experience. The three of them talked about how, obviously, Los Angeles can be so unbearably hot that you want to just explode. It makes you want to take everything off and run away to somewhere cold. But, despite this wish, you are still, unfortunately, stuck there. So, there’s a kind of mental daydream caused by weather-induced malaise or insanity but it’s not true escapism because you are still stuck in your skin in the unbearable heat. This line of daydreaming but not achieving true escapism is allegedly a big part of the album, ie. wanting to leave but needing/wanting/having to stay and navigate the uncomfortable.
They expanded this idea to be not just about immediate experiences or relationships, but to the overarching political environment in the United States right now. More specifically, they focused on the experience of living through the current political climate while also in the age of social media. In this social media era, we become aware of every tragedy and horror happening simultaneously across the world. It is so incredibly hard and can feel hopeless at times. They talked at length about how the thesis presented in “It Gets so Hot” fits here. The world around us pushes us to either want to avoid it or give up in the face of looming tragedies. It is difficult to navigate this pursuit of continuing to care, however you can, and the experience of hopelessness in the face of these large scale systematic issues. The big song to look out for that captures this political commentary will be “The Big Stick”. The title is even in reference to the famous quote of Theodore Roosevelt; “speak softly and carry a big stick.”
According to Katie Gavin, the song talks about how this “big stick” mentality is rooted in fear and has led to so much division and systematic oppression in the country. The band talked about how they read and reflected a lot about the state of politics in the country as they worked on the album. Katie also went on to hint that other songs on the album touch on the “rotting stage” of capitalism we currently live under and the role influencers, including musicians and artists, play and are expected to play in the intense pressure to consume and engage with the capitalistic system.
One of the members also made a comment about a professor reaching out to them to congratulate them on the announcement of the album. The professor was essentially applauding them for carrying on the tradition of 80s synth-pop and punk music as resistance to capitalism and an movement of political activism. It’s no mistake that the album and the band are inspired both sonically and theoretically by this era. Katie Gavin even commented that she hopes this album inspires everyone to form a band. The band proceeded to discuss how important it is to make art and music at this time and to engage in community in the face of political turmoil and late-stage capitalism. I think it’s a big factor on why they chose to play intimate shows on their small tour in May.
It was so refreshing and energizing to hear artists talk about the intention in their music. To talk through all the reflection, mediation and thinking that goes into a body of work like this. It’s so easy to forget what the music really means and what music historically has meant and done. It can carry so much power and bring people together. It was just really exciting to get to hear artists I admire talk about this for 2 hours at a small venue whose entire history is rooted in the importance of independent music and community. I had a great time. I can’t wait for the album. And if you hadn’t heard of MUNA before, definitely go check them out. Their music is SO fun.
