Establishing the mood with a cerebral, echoed laugh and compressed count-in, Chloe Jessica opens The Middle with intrigue before expanding into a luscious pop-rock soundscape with a power-pop adjacency as lead singer Chloe Wood shares the introspective prose, “Was a funny feeling, left my gut twisting, telling me you weren’t the one…”
We appreciate the nostalgia that manifests with the chords and soundscape, evoking notions of The Beach Boys, but with a contemporary feel that transpires with Chloe Wood‘s timbre and intonation. The philosophical depth and authenticity of the prose is also tangible. The evolution of the sound into a rockier frequency for the choruses is welcome as the band shares a higher emotional quotient.
The lyrics are relatable, Chloe confesses, “This single is about my past relationship in which I was cheated on after placing so much trust in him and realising that I had glorified him for our entire relationship and, once this was over, I realised just how much better off I am without him. However, I was still very much hurt by the events, so there is very much an undercurrent of this in the single.”
She adds, “We feel that the lyrical content takes a new perspective on a widely visited topic regarding unfaithful partners and bad relationships.”
There is no doubt that The Middle would be perfect for a range of sync placements – perhaps an episode of My Life With The Walter Boys, or a coming-of-age Hollywood film like Lady Bird, or Now and Then.
We learn that this is Chloe Jessica‘s debut single. As for its construction, Chloe Wood wrote the song and composed the chords, with the rest of the four-piece comprising of Holly Borlase, Adam Gould and Neva Bevan. The band met whilst studying music at university, and the track was recorded, mixed and mastered with producer Will Hallett in the same studio where the band first bonded! They also confess to being heavily influenced by early Taylor Swift.
As the band’s first release, the song marks a significant milestone, and definitely offers a fresh perspective on a relatable theme whilst setting the foundation for the band’s upcoming live shows, including headline dates at Birmingham’s O2 Institute and The Rainbow.
Needless to say, we are in awe, and have added The Middle to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whist we anticipate future releases from Chloe Jessica and await footage from their live shows!