Judging by songs like Bashlow’s “Pretty Crier”, most dating-age men today are colossal jerks. We need more young guys like Super Bowl champ Patrick Mahomes: faithful husband, loving father, all-around nice guy. Unfortunately, LA-based Bashlow hasn’t found any like that.
Last year, Bashlow shared a song that confided “I don’t want to be a sitcom wife.” But that scenario sounds downright cheery compared to her portrait of a truly toxic relationship in “Pretty Crier” – a song co-written and produced by Ships Have Sailed frontman Will Carpenter.
“‘Pretty Crier’ started as a song that lived only in my head as melody and lyrics,” says Bashlow. “When I got into the session with Will, that’s when the song really came to life. It is a cathartic, slightly tongue-in-cheek recollection of my first college relationship, which was really unhealthy and emotionally abusive. Writing this song is one way I’ve been able to reflect and heal (along with a lot of therapy). It helps me see how ridiculous his behavior was and find humor in an otherwise humorless situation.”
Bashlow has a real knack for writing moody, melodic songs like 2022’s “7 Letter Word” and “Busy!” Let’s hope she finds a genuinely nice guy (like actor Michael Cera perhaps) by the time her next EP arrives.
Listen to “Pretty Crier” below, or find it on the streaming services.