If you're not familiar with West Virginia indie rock band Hello June yet, correct that by pressing play on the video to its latest single, "Mars."
Sarah Rudy and Whit Alexander have been quietly making a name for themselves in their hometown of Morgantown, but "Mars" is a song worthy of national attention. It's a pulsating slice of 1990s comfort food that will shake the stardust from your heartstrings.
Rudy's hushed, understated vocals encourage turning individual discontent into societal change. "There is loneliness in feeling alien to society's boundaries and its hostility toward genuine forms of happiness," Rudy said of "Mars." "But there is community and purpose to be found in reclaiming it. That idea can hold us together - the hope that the way out becomes the way forward."
Produced and accompanied by collaborator and fellow West Virginian Bud Carroll, "Mars" feels like a deeper dive into the shimmery indie rock we at West Virginia Public Broadcasting grew fond of on their last EP, Spruce.
We'll certainly be keeping tabs on Hello June while we wait for the duo's new album to be released in September. For now, the NPR Music Instagram becomes mission control as Rudy and Alexander take over the profile on Thursday, June 28.
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