Establishing the mood with a cerebral record scratch and a hard rock-meets-alternative hybrid soundscape, Queen City Rising opens A Drug Life Indeed with a visceral energy, detailed with dramatic piano and the lyrics, “My friends all have died with a needle by their side, have to wonder where they’d be today, mama yes she lied, didn’t wanna see her cry, she doesn’t know what to say for heaven’s gate…”
The opus, dedicated to Naomi Blair Collins, expands with fierce guitars and a poignant message. We immediately connect with the raw authenticity and the emotional gravity of the songwriting. Artist Mike Paris feels like a self-realized soul who places real people at the centre of his narrative. He allows us to experience the grief, confusion and unanswered questions that remain when someone is lost.
The intricate guitar interludes are particularly impressive, almost functioning as emotional punctuation building into more cerebral rock and roll energy with emotive chord changes. The guitars create undeniable moments of tension and release, and there is a strong grunge sensibility at play.
We could imagine fans of Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Foo Fighters connecting with what Queen City Rising have created, there are also notions of Nirvana and even The Red Hot Chili Peppers. We could see A Drug Life Indeed landing a sync placement in a film like Beautiful Boy, Requiem for a Dream, Ben Is Back, or The Wrestler. On television, we could imagine it working in an episode of Euphoria, The Day of the Jackal or Yellowjackets.
What makes the track even more affecting is the intention behind it. Mike Paris explains that he wanted to focus on the human side of addiction, recognising that behind every headline and every number is someone whose life mattered.
Queen City Rising is the solo project of singer-songwriter and guitarist Mike Paris, who was raised on Long Island before living in Cincinnati, Ohio’s “Queen City”, which ultimately inspired the project’s name. Paris writes, sings and plays guitar on every song himself. We love his philosophy: “Rock never died. It just got quiet. I’m here to turn it back up.”
Needless to say, we have added A Drug Life Indeed to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the wider discography of Queen City Rising, including We The People, and There’s You.