Photo by Dan Monick

In hindsight, “Bride of Usher”, a highlight off of Joyce Manor’s 2012 criminally underrated sophomore effort Of All Things I Will Soon Grow Tired was well ahead of where they needed to be at that time. Most of the punks just weren’t ready yet to hear then then-scrappy DIY scene darlings tidy things up and start working on their best Smiths impression in jangle-pop form. Now that we’re over a decade-plus removed from that period and a good chunk of the Torrence band’s listeners are firmly entrenched into draining workdays, paying bills, and seeing your social networks as well as youth wither away, my guess is that hearing the band pull up in 2025 with a very Moz-titled single called “All My Friends Are So Depressed” hits much differently in the context of their adulting. Barry Johnson calls this his idea of what Lana Del Rey lyrics sound like. It’s actually just him being typically morbidly verbose through the guitar-pop filter of the Smiths to indulge in without all of the Morrissey baggage behind it. “Easy come and easy go / Dishwasher just overflowed / Keylime pie and Frampton live / Wish that I would fucking die.” Who needs to let out their frustration in a mosh pit anymore when the gentle pits of despair are enough?

Directed by: Jaxton Wittington

Joyce Manor’s “All My Friends Are So Depressed” single is available now on Epitaph Records.