Emily Whitchurch
I’m a recent politics graduate and freelance journalist based between the Midlands and London!
Ocean LeClair’s latest entry is a dose of breezy retro-pop with tightly woven punchy lyrics
With its charming old-school cover art, Ocean LeClair’s latest single ‘Cool Kids’ delivers a vintage postcard straight to your door and a breezy dose of retro-pop straight to your ears – think Hollywood glamour meets 60s kitsch. Incorporating a dynamic blend of nostalgic and contemporary influences, from textured vocals to a futuristic synth interlude, ‘Cool Kids’ marks the start of a refreshing new era for the London-based singer.
Throughout the track, playful vocals and bouncy percussion are paired with sharper lyricism ruminating on social isolation as LeClair effortlessly captures the simultaneous melancholia and mischief that so often pervades teenage summers.
But rest assured, the more plaintive lines about “cool kids, so out of touch, running from the world” ultimately don’t weigh the track down. While LeClair may feel like she’s on summer’s sidelines – “everyone else has love and a tan” – ‘Cool Kids’ retains a lighthearted buoyancy that propels us onwards and upwards. As she declares at the end of the track, this is “the summer of our dreams”. It’s okay if you’re not one of the cool kids this summer, because Ocean LeClair says so.
Listen to ‘Cool Kids’ here: