By Elle Dickson, Staff Writer
You’ll need to collect yourself after listening to TORRES' newest song, “Collect.” The single is set to be the sixth track on her sixth album, What an enormous room.
Boygenius’ Julien Baker wrote the new album’s official biography, writing, “What I can say about TORRES is I think the music comes from a convicted place. Not convicted meaning a person is narrowly and foolishly committed to an ideal, or unshakably convinced of themselves, or a zealot, or stubborn. I mean dedicated…it’s all done with conviction of an artist with the (essential) belief in the worth of their task.”
DIVING INTO THE LYRICS AND SOUND OF “COLLECT”
The song opens with a buzzy guitar and a gritty, almost crunchy, sound. Mackenzie Scott then sings a series of one-liners, like, “I don’t know what you expect,” “Is that what you deserve?” and “Did I hit a nerve?” at the midway mark. She then says “Don’t sleep yet, my hunger is whet”, commenting that her desire is sharpening and the other person should not give into what they want until she is satisfied. TORRES is seemingly asking to provoke someone, telling them she is going to collect what they don’t deserve and asking them if they are upset.
Scott commented in a press release that “this song is about justice being served” and that “Collect” is “the rage song [she’s] been trying to write for years”.
The angry and sinister vibe is not exclusive to the lyrics. “Collect” continues TORRES’ typical brand of indie rock with some elements of pop, but also includes a heavy amount of reverb. When I first listened to it, my first thought was that I did not want someone singing this about me.
THE MUSIC VIDEO & WHAT’S NEXT FOR TORRES
In the accompanying music video, the themes of anger and redemption continue. The video is grainy and gives the same vibe as those music videos everyone seemed to make in middle and high school, with Scott dancing around and playing her guitar, occasionally holding up middle fingers. Someone made TORRES mad and she is determined to make them pay.
TORRES continues to evolve and progress into an even more successful artist and is showing no signs of slowing down. What an enormous room is set to be released on January 26th, 2024.
