By now you will know that we are obsessed with Ava Valianti, having featured her captivating, emotive and dynamic masterpiece, January, as well as Wishing Well, which captures the struggle of letting go with an optimistic edge. Naturally, when we heard that Ava was back with Laugh Track, we were intrigued to say the least, and couldn’t wait to listen and share our experience!
Drawing us in with a brief moment of crowd noise, akin to an early Elliott Smith song, expanding with an acoustic guitar energy and evolving with introspective and poignant prose, Ava share the opening words, “I hurt more than I’d like to admit, but I’ll always go along with the bit…”
Laugh Track explores how Ava struggles with themes of internal pain, the notion of people pleasing, and a sentiment that life is a performance. It also taps into not feeling good enough, and. trying to hide sadness behind humour… constantly questioning if she is worth the time or attention of others. It’s deep and playful at the same time.
It is clear that Ava wants to express how hard it is to go inward and be honest about her flaws. It’s not just about sadness, but it’s about identity, anxiety, and the fear of being judged or misunderstood. There’s also a desire for connection and validation.
Laugh Track definitely echoes the raw, self-aware vulnerability and theatrical sadness of Bo Burnham, Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski, Penelope Scott, and Lorde, which kind of blend humour with insecurity, and emotional honesty into a bittersweet reflection on identity and the performance of being okay.
Speaking on the release, Ava confesses, “Framing my life as a sitcom, I wrestle with the fear of being more of a punchline than a protagonist, questioning whether the laughter around me is with me or at me.”
The star continues, “Through references to The Truman Show and How I Met Your Mother’s Ted Mosby, I capture the weight of constant self-awareness, finding solace in flawed TV characters while grappling with the version of myself I no longer want to be.”
We love the intellectual depth that manifests with what Ava Valianti is creating, as well as her exquisite range and timbre, and have added Laugh Track to our New Music Spotlight playlist, as well as our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream her growing discography and anticipate future releases!