Slothrust - 'Pony'
Slothrust share new single ‘Pony’ along with the announcement of new EP ‘I Promise’.
Today Slothrust release new single ‘Pony’, as the duo take on the 90s R&B freakytime Ginuwine’s “Pony’ while vocalist and guitarist Leah Wellbaum and drummer, percussionist Will Gorin develop the single into classic Slothrust sound. The band have a history on turning hit songs into their own, and this new release is no different; with the previous release from their 2017 album ‘Show Me How You Want It to Be’ with tracks ‘Baby One More Time’ and ‘Happy Together’ where the duo turned the song’s famously delusional narrative into a roaring articulation objectified rage.
The duo makes ‘Pony’ their own, swapping Ginuwine’s catchy beat and smooth vocals making their version grunge as they add notably heavier guitar and drum work and Slothrust’s version swings like a lithe slice of sludgy rock ‘n’ roll and is a revelatory venn diagram of the best 90s nostalgia and forward-looking celebration of the now. On the single, Will says, “I feel like we have developed our own unique sound to the point where we can ask ourselves ‘what would Slothrust do?’” He continues “The paradox being that if we did know, Slothrust would do the opposite.”
Leah Wellbaum says that they’ve been working together for so long and for the past 15 years, they’ve played different genres and different configurations together and this offers them “tremendous freedom” which is shown in this single as the extended version of ‘Pony’ snaps necks. Clocking in at just over 14 minutes long, Slothrust dives in right at the deep end with seared guitar solos and pulsing drum patterns, paying homage to the original while showcasing the Slothrust strengths and talent.
“It’s always fun to leave space in the music where improvisation is possible” says Wellbaum. They continue that this is what was exciting to the duo about recording the extended version of ‘Pony’; “it’s entirely improvised, and we only did one performance of it in the studio.”
With Slothrust gearing up to go on tour with The Front Bottoms, get ready and jump on to save the date for their latest EP out October 20th.
Words by Bethany SImms
