BEST NEW TRACK: FEIST - PLEASURE

Most people remember Feist through their iPod purchases, and her bubbly, break-out hit of “1234” that had everyone nursery-rhyming all over 2007. You wanna know how I remember her? Crying alone in my room to “Lonely Lonely” and nursing some heartbreak. I don’t mean to bum you out, guys -- but this is the beauty of Feist’s songwriting, how she can oscillate from the utter peak of joy right down to sorrow’s precipice.

FEIST - PLEASURE

It’s been six long years since the Canadian singer’s had a major release, but “Pleasure” assuages any fear that she’s lost her creative touch. The song begins as lo-fi as you can possibly get -- Feist seemingly riffing on a guitar and aimlessly singing about life, taking a turn for a grunge aesthetic once the chorus hits. The guitar-strumming gets aggressive and I’m transported to 1993 for a second.

Despite the bursts of energy, I find the song to be a slow burn. But once the song gets there, and the strings start to seep in, and the emotion in her voice begins to swell, “Pleasure” then reaches that perfect in-between that she’s garnered so much acclaim for. The song triumphs through its own static, and by the end, Feist’s voice is a spirited roar much like the jubilance in her past hits.

I’ve been a fan since Broken Social Scene, as I suspect a lot of people have. To know she’s coming back after a long hiatus, with a song that sounds sincerely “Feist”-y, makes me have hope in this bleak-ass year. We Are: The Guard will have our ears locked on her Soundcloud for anything else she’ll release in the coming months.