Shamir – “Oversized Sweater”

Photo by Matthew James Wilson

The songwriting polymath prowess of Shamir knows no bounds and you have to respect the audacity in it all, whether the risks pay off or not. Where he last ventured was the arguably misunderstood altered zone of industrial experimentation in last year’s Urban Outfitters clearance bin find, Heterosexuality, that defied any convention around it. Still, at their best, his own makings of straight-lined pop music really is such a sweet spot for him to return to whenever he finds his way back to it. “Oversized Sweater”, the first single from Shamir’s ninth album, Homo Anietatem, is as lived in and welcoming as its name would suggest and kicks off a newfound sense of grounding in his creative path after transitional phases and getting unstuck from life itself. Lyrically, it’s perhaps one of his most relatable breakups to date, right down to the sound of a soon-to-be-ex drowning out the sound of his Peacock subscription to its chorus: “Some people last a week / Last a month or last a lifetime / And you never know how long / They’ll stay till the end.” Total downer there that works on all levels in justifying getting high today, but knit between it is a comforting feel for modern alternative pop-rock aesthetics that should leave the rest of the girlies shook now that he’s taking a stab at his own Liz Phair commercial flop era. This “Oversized Sweater” fits him perfectly.

Directed by: Shamir Bailey and Felix Donate Perez

Shamir’s Homo Anxietatem will be released August 18th on Kill Rock Stars.