Rachel Bochner - ‘It’s Not Me, It’s U’ | EP Review
September 7 | Written By Evelyn Burr
Rachel Bochner’s newest release ‘It’s Not Me, It’s U’ gifts the alt-pop scene with an ode to the drama of modern relationships. This is the third EP from the New York singer/songwriter, and marks her most cohesive and assured piece of work to date, exuding confidence at every turn.
Bochner packs a range of emotional punch into this EP’s six track run. Each song captures a new facet of the struggles of modern love: desire, heartache, insecurity and spite are all explored across the EP’s catchy choruses and punchy melodies. Bochner asserts unapologetically on the opening track that she’s Here for the Drama over a brazen guitar instrumental, right before delivering a biting anthem about yearning on You Don’t Want Me Like That. Many of us know all too well such a mental back-and-forth, and Bochner not only captures this experience perfectly but presents it as a thrilling alt-pop ride.
Hard to Please opens with the seemingly innocuous idea that many of us have pondered: ‘maybe I’ll get a nose ring’. From this line bursts an outpour of self-doubt and frustration in the EP’s third track, with Bochner ‘swimming, sinking, oceans deep’ and realising ‘God, I’m so hard to please’. The chorus and its lyrics are cathartic and evoke a sober moment of self-recognition - if there’s a track on this EP to be screamed in your car, it’s this one - yet the song’s narrative ends unresolved, concluding with the same nose ring question that opens it. What a fitting metaphor for the cycle of self-doubt that will surely ring true for many listeners.
On the EP’s second half, Bochner teaches us how to bounce back. The edgy break up tune If I’m Gunna Be Sad (I Might As Well Look Hot Doing It), sees Bochner team up with frequent collaborator Tiger Darrow over an alluring instrumental that seamlessly blends the moody and the playful. Bochner then comes out fighting on the closing tracks Sucker Punch and Men Like You that end the EP on an anthemic high, proving exactly why Bochner deserves her status as a rising alt-pop queen. Bochner’s final confession that she’s ‘tired of playing nice’ feels like a fitting end to a journey of vulnerability, hurt and self-discovery that we have all traversed with her in this EP’s short run-time.
Navigating the ups-and-downs of relationships with the self and others is not an easy feat, and Bochner by no means portrays it as such. In ‘It’s Not Me, It’s U’, Bochner recognises the messiness and the complexities of her emotions, and has given us a soundtrack for embracing ours.
Check out ‘It’s Not Me, It’s U’ here.
Check out Rachel Bochner on Spotify here.
Follow Rachel Bochner here.
Follow The Music Mag on Instagram here.
Follow The Music Mag on Facebook here.
Connect with us on Linkedin here.
Check out The Music Mag on TikTok here.
Discover more incredible music with our playlists here.