The Spatulas - Beehive Mind

Instantly captivating debut LP by The Spatulas, an Oregon-based indie-rock (in the original sense of the word) outfit led by the insistent songwriting and voice of Miranda Soileau-Pratt. Honestly, I had to double take on this one, not immediately convinced this was a product of 2024. This is a good thing (no shade on 2024, but... yknow). Where else, then, might Beehive Mind have come from? I'd start by winding back 35 years or so, to Seattle or Boston or wherever Mary Lou Lord was laying a hat at that time, or down to San Francisco to see where Barbara Manning is at. Or cross the Pacific even, check in on The Bats or The Clean and the like. Which is to say there's a classic off-kilter beauty to what Soileau-Pratt is doing here, allying eyes-closed vocal bravery with killer lyricism that makes a dance of the interplay between anxiety, vulnerability and the absolute sense of self it takes to write music like this. And sorry I don't know the exact answer, but whoever it is playing lead is doing a mighty fine job, starting and then not stopping and never doing anything other than exactly what's needed. Other names come to mind, like Lois or Jenny Mae or even Jim Shephard, but none seem to stick absolutely, which is less a reflection of my inadequacies as a writer (thank god) and more a reflection of the inescapable truth: Soileau-Pratt is a real one.