SHEARS - 'Face'

It’s only been a little over six weeks since we were swooning over SHEARS’ last single ‘Afterthought’ but luckily, and no doubt to the extreme envy of a famished Oliver Twist, we’ve not had to wait long for another generous portion of pop perfection. 

‘Face’ is the third single to be cherry-picked from the multi-talented musician/producer’s second EP ‘Mind In Decline’ which is scheduled for an October release. Whereas former releases ‘Pick Me Up’ and the aforementioned ‘Afterthought’ have been very much a solo effort, this one sees the production wheel passed on to artist/producer Dunt before being driven through the mixing carwash by LA’s Matty Green (Dua Lipa, Grouplove, TV on the Radio). 

The track shares a similar frantic energy to that of Dua Lipa’s ‘Physical’ with its up-tempo beat pattern. That said though, that’s where the similarities end, and it doesn’t venture anywhere near the murky hot waters that Olivia Rodrigo was unfortunate enough to find herself in over the summer.   

I gave up spin classes years ago, but if I was still into them or if I succumbed to buying a Peloton for about £8000 during lockdown, I could imagine this song would be a daily feature to distract from the punishment and act as some well-needed motivation to cross the imaginary finish line as I’m getting barked at by an instructor. 

It’s mid-September and the EP’s not even out yet but I can already confidently say that the ‘Mind In Decline’ will be my favourite EP of the year by some distance and SHEARS claimed my artist of the year title long before this latest triumph. 

Words by Richard Cobb

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