album: Modern Female Rockstar - The Sonder Bombs

album: Modern Female Rockstar - The Sonder Bombs

The Sonder Bombs make the kind of confessional, hopeful, and earnest music that I needed like 15 years ago. On their release Modern Female Rockstar, the Cleveland, Ohio based outfit presents this glimmering burst of encouragement; making for the perfect New Year listening experience.

The band — compromised of Willow Hawks, Jimmy Wilkens, and Eric Heald — has drawn rightful comparisons to Paramore, but the addition of a ukulele and Hawks’s entirely endearing honesty is what distinguishes this band from anyone else. On “Pot and Kettle,” the group hides a biting message of self-empowerment under catchy lyrics and whimsical strings, with Hawks declaring, “I understand that you’re having trouble letting go/But it’s your fault that you’re a person I don’t wanna know anymore.” And that same endorsement of following your heart comes again on singles including the swinging —and adorably titled — “U(ke) Ain’t Enough,” and on “Title,” — which could be the largest middle finger ever pointed to those that doubt the power of non-male performers.

So much of our own feelings and thoughts can be filtered and glazed over with the help of social media, but The Sonder Bombs are one of those special acts that refuse to let even the darkest corners go untouched. Modern Female Rockstar is an open invitation to scream your lungs out and to let yourself finding healing; and even if you’re not ready for that step, then Hawks is willing to make the journey for you. All you have to do is follow along.