There is a wonderfully chaotic feeling to Avery Friedman’s new single ‘Photo Booth’, one designed to reflect the heady night out with friends (and a photo booth) that inspired it, Friedman says there’s “something about the novelty, containment and ephemerality of a photo booth just invites a sort of flirtatious mischief.”
The song has a happily scuffed feel with a stop-start collage of sounds including a rippling arpeggio, fuzzed guitar and the compressed splash of drums and bass. Everything is held together by the rising and falling of Avery Friedman’s wonderful vocals which slide through the song, woozily-soft with a hint of grit, sometimes drifting into falsetto and always holding your attention. It perfectly captures that moment between sober and smashed where everything drifts around in a happy haze. Photo booths* don’t just capture the image but also imbue it with the fun and emotion of the moment.
“You hold it in your hands
Remnants of the flashes
You can try to fold it away
But exposure’s in your gaze
Thigh-to-thigh in black and white
Circle the full moon tonight.”
I asked Avery to give Joyzine an exclusive quote about the song and she said that ‘Photo Booth’ is “unlike any other song on the record. It’s a song that’s meant to capture the essence of a fun and flirty night out. When we landed on this recording, I was a bit worried it’d feel out of place among the rest of the tracks, all of which are more rooted in guitar and in more typical indie rock instrumentation, generally. But ultimately, I view “Photo Booth” as a song that pushes further elements that exist more subtly in other areas of the record — like glitchy synths, vocal effects, and curated chaos. This year, I’m excited to play my first shows outside of New York, starting with some unofficial showcases at SXSW. I’m also getting ready for an album release show, and hopefully to start recording LP #2, too.”
Joyzine photographer Mat Coffey and I have long shared love of the photo booth. There’s something about the brutal simplicity of that utilitarian box with its flimsy curtain, mirror, brutal flash and those four time-constrained opportunities to get the shot. The rules are simple, three shots for the official document and one ‘crazy’ pic for yourself, or the night out with friends where you all cram into its confined space, everyone jostling to be in the frame, or four declarations of passion with the love of your life.
*The first patent for an ‘automated photography machine’ was filed in Baltimore by William Pope in 1888 and French inventor T. E. Enjalbert had one on display at the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris, but it wasn’t until the 1920s the commercial version we think of today came along. Up until instant cameras such as Polaroid and unless you developed and printed your own photographs it was often the only way for same sex couples to have a memento of their love at a time when homosexuality was outlawed.
‘Photo Booth’ is out now and taken from the New Thing EP which is released on 18 April.
Avery Friedman Socials: Linktree | Bandcamp | Instagram | Bluesky | Threads | YouTube | TikTok | Facebook
LYRICS:
Give you a little look
Truth-or-dare pupils
And there’ll be a little line
If you want to change your mind
You can hold it in your hand
You can see what you’ve done
And the curtain can’t hide it
When all the music quiets
Four strikes and you’re out
Photo Booth blood magic
You hold it in your hands
Remnants of the flashes
You can try to fold it away
But exposure’s in your gaze
Thigh-to-thigh in black and white
Circle the full moon tonight
And the curtain can’t hide it
When all the music quiets
Four strikes and you’re out
Photo Booth blood magic
And the curtain can’t hide it
Photo Booth blood magic
And the curtain can’t hide it
Photo Booth blood magic
And the curtain can’t
Review by Paul F Cook
Keep up to date with all new content on Joyzine via our
Facebook | Bluesky | Instagram | Threads | Mailing List
1 comment