Daniel Johns, lead singer of the grungy Australian rock band Silverchair, dropped a new solo single, the first of four tracks that will make up a new EP scheduled for early March of this year.
The track, “Aerial Love,” is a gloriously subdued, yet soulful jam. Very far away from the spectrum of tunes that Silverchair played for nearly 20 years, Johns can be heard here sporting a mean falsetto against a backdrop of weightless bass and thumping beats. It’s an airy piece of modern pop created alongside Lorde and Broods
It’s a great new direction for Johns, whose former punk/grunge band ended up making some really great music after their teenage angst expired – 2002’s Diorama expanded the band’s sound with larger, grander arrangements, while 2007’s Young Modern continued in that direction with catchier, fresher hooks and beautiful string arrangements. (I still stand by the fact that Young Modern is probably one of the most underrated albums of the last decade…at least here in the States. It’s so worth checking out if you haven’t already.)
With “Aerial Love,” Johns is turning about-face once again, delivering something completely out of his wheelhouse…but it works. Not only does this track make me excited to hear the rest of his solo work, but it’s actually making his forthcoming album one of my most anticipated albums for 2015.
Check out the just-released video for “Aerial Love”:
