Drawing us in with an intricate acoustic guitar soundscape and textured drums, tcr! opens On Vancouver Island with raw authenticity and atmospheric vocals with the haunting, situational lyrics, “There’s a coming tide, run and hide, I open the door and out you slide, you left my side… Smiling from the outside with cocky pride… You played with my head, I don’t know where you are…”
We love the tempo switch-up and the repeating mantra, inviting us to rewind and start again, before a brief but meditative, acoustic solo respite before the second verse. Fans of the sensibilities of early Smashing Pumpkins will definitely be able to connect with what tcr! is creating.
We love the lo-fi grunge vibes with poetic prowess and candid prose, particularly the fast-paced flow, which is visceral and assertive, painting a vivid picture of what really went down between the protagonists of the song.
On Vancouver Island also holds a cinematic allure, and we could imagine the song featured in an episode of Euphoria, or a subversive TV show like End of the F***ing World, in a poignant scene that exemplifies the broken hearted narrative of the track.
tcr! describes the track as, “Brutally honest lyrics examine the dynamics of a toxic relationship without pulling punches or mincing words.” The song comes from the band’s 2026 EP Dear Rabbits. As with the rest of the record, it was produced in a lo-fi style with bluesy acoustic guitar and rough-filtered vocals over a loping backbeat.
Needless to say, we absolutely love what tcr! has created, and have added On Vancouver Island to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the wider discography of the project, including Dropped All My Pumpkins, and the entirety of Dear Rabbits.