★★★★★

Earlier this year, New York two-piece Daisy Grenade (comprised of Dani Nigro and Keaton Whittaker) released their third EP, ‘So Much To Say’, alongside an accompanying short film. Apparently, however, they still had more to say. A full, remixed version of the EP, titled ‘So Much 2 Say’ and featuring five different singers across the tracklist, was released on the 30th October - adding fresh perspectives and exciting new harmonies to the already perfect songwriting, production and vocals present in this project. 

The feature on the EP’s opening track, ‘A Beautiful Woman Is A Weapon, I Guess That’s Why They Call Her A Bombshell’ was the final one announced at the end of a thrilling week of video teasers from the band. The remixed version now guest stars none other than Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy - a band they share a long-time friendship with. Daisy Grenade supported Fall Out Boy on their last tour, and are signed to bassist Pete Wentz’s independent record label, DCD2 Records. It was only a matter of time before a collaboration came to fruition, and truly there was no better song for it to happen on. 

‘Bombshell’ shows Daisy Grenade at their most vicious - a powerful, pop-rock anthem that screams to “put your weapons up against a wall of self-obsession” and give voice to the universal feelings of feminine rage. Stump’s vocals add a whole new texture to the track, with the slight reprise of the pre-chorus before the bridge and the iconic riffs after it, standing out as new moments that fully drive home the complex anger and desperation of this song. This remix is the perfect bridging point between the sounds and lyrical themes of both bands, and acts as a brilliant introduction to this revamped EP.

Back in September, Daisy Grenade posted an open verse challenge for the EP’s second song - jealousy anthem ‘Emily’. Following the remix of this very video, the song now features a verse from the perspective of its titular antagonist sung by Cassadee Pope. Pope’s tone perfectly captures confident cool-girl Emily, as she calmly accuses the song’s original speaker of also enjoying the drama that she causes, adding so much character to the “real love/hate” relationship conveyed in the song. 

‘Girls Are So Lucky’, the fast-paced, electronic centrepiece of the EP, also features a brand new verse, this time from indie/bedroom popstar Chloe Moriondo. The song explores (and even manages to romanticise) the trials faced by a touring artist. Moriondo’s verse inputs their own experience alongside the stories of being mistaken for the drummer’s girlfriend and interesting bathroom fan experiences already chronicled by Daisy Grenade. “Load into the venue and I’m sleeping on the floor / Do you think this is new? Baby welcome to tour” Moriondo sings, over the song’s deliberately choppy, frantic production. The lyrics are so personal and the music itself so wild (and ever so slightly stress inducing) that it’s easy to imagine yourself in that dressing room, preparing to go onstage. 

Dan Campbell, lead vocalist of American rock band The Wonder Years, takes on the feature in softer heartbreak ballad ‘Rent To Own’. The harmonies present in the latter half of this new version are an immediate highlight, adding an even deeper agony to the final echoes of “You won’t / Text me when you get home”. Campbell’s take on the second verse is one of the most heartbreaking moments of the whole EP, with the lyrical example of choosing to hide your crooked teeth from someone you don’t want to lose evoking such a gut-wrenching feeling of human desperation by the time the line “Wire my jaw if it means that you’ll stay for a while” is reached. This song may slow down the pace of the EP, but it ramps up the emotional tension, which eventually culminates and explodes in the final track. 

It Must Be Me’ begins with a heartbroken spoken-word intro directed towards a lost lover’s answering machine. From that point on, the song continues to grow - initially with that same desperation felt in ‘Rent To Own’ and eventually with a cathartic acceptance that it’s time to move on. However in this version, there is a sense of maturity and reflection added by pinkshift vocalist Ashrita Kumar’s verse. Whilst beginning with an almost nostalgic “Hi / I never stopped thinking of you” they end on a powerful, self-reclaiming note: “You’ll never see me crying / Now who’s the one who’s hiding”. The entire project is wrapped up beautifully by a simple line change in the final moments of the song: “You never loved me like that” Kumar asserts, over Nigro and Whitaker’s lamentations of all the time they wasted with someone who was never capable of loving them back. It’s a powerful ending, not just to this remix EP, but to the entire story of ‘So Much To Say’ told over the course of all its formats. 

‘So Much 2 Say’ achieves the near impossible - instead of a reheated version of the EP we already know and love, Daisy Grenade have masterfully reinvented their best body of work to date, whilst proving their versatility and range and featuring only the best artists suited to each individual song’s tone and character. They strike the perfect balance between guests who are up and coming, and some absolute icons within the pop/punk genre, making the whole EP a chaotic, fun and fresh rollercoaster of a fifteen minute runtime. The band will be touring ‘So Much 2 Say’ around the US this November, with tickets available now. 

Rachel Furnish

@rachel_writes_a_lot

Image: ‘So Much 2 Say’ Official EP Cover