When it was announced on Twitter on the 26th March 2021 that Litany, AKA Beth Cornell would be releasing another single on April Fool’s Day, I was ecstatic. Since finding the alt pop band through an Extra gum advert (the one with the zombie to be exact) I had been a fan. With energetic chords, beats and a lyrical style that always felt like it was telling a story, their most recent track Uh Huh had been no exception.
Uh Huh had a Catchy beat that packed a punch, cheeky lyrics that are an unashamed celebration of sex, with an equally funny video directed by Joe Lycett. It was one of the most high-quality videos Litany had ever given to the world.
However, As I got the new song ‘Playlist’ ready to listen to on YouTube I questioned many things: Would Oscar Schneller as the featured artist compliment Litany's voice? Whether Litany could live up to the hype of their last release Uh Huh? Given the amount of star power, budget and overall fun feeling in Uh Huh, could it top that? Or would it be a flop on a Spotify playlist, that when on shuffle you'd quickly try to skip?
The video to playlist starts on a close up of an old iPod, the likes of the nineties and noughties kids will remember, and then the music kicks in with an electronic beat that feels retro but playful; somehow similar to that of a sound effect of a video game, all typical of litany's nostalgic style.
The lyrics are also catchy with the first verse starting with: "Must've listened 'bout a hundred times. Are you spelling something out? And I wanna say that by the time I hit track nine. Think I had it figured out."
The chorus also has a nice rhythm and sound, especially as Litany sings the lyrics a bit higher creating a lovely pitch.
"Now I got your playlist on thinking 'bout you with no clothes on. Boy, I got your playlist on until you come over, I'm hit restart."
The lyrics seal the single as a love letter to the days of kids having to create a mixtape, give it to their crush and hope that they wouldn't laugh at them and actually be able to score a date. Also, for the kids that now have Spotify it’s a cool track that'll inspire a new modern wave of mixtapes for their crushes ‘Playlist’ is a tiny snippet of the good ole days.
Playlist gets even better though as Oscar Schneller joins in the second verse which enables the tone of the song to feel fuller and more complete, almost soothing.
Yet the real treat is when we get to the chorus and the two artists harmonise- which considering how deep Schneller’s voice is, feels almost impossible but it works perfectly! With both the artists and the song. Ultimately the harmonising makes ‘Playlist’ have the perfect sound to be a summertime song or feels like something you'd play on the beach with your friends- which is a feat considering it was released on April Fool’s Day.
Playlist is ultimately another hit for Litany and Oscar Schneller with the typical retro pop style, cool and inventive beats, all staples of Litany's style, and a brilliant harmony between two very different sounding artists that has created another success for the artists.
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