Last month, Phoebe Bridgers’ Saddest Factory Records announced the signing of JJ Shurbet, a powerful singer/songwriter that goes by the alias Scruffpuppie. “Assignment Song”, her first release on the label, was a powerful punk rock burner that was a raucous introduction to the songwriter, suggesting that much was ahead for the 20-year-old.
Today, we’ve received the second track from Scruffpuppie, and it’s arguably one of the most devastatingly beautiful tracks released in 2021. “Paint” is a heavy song; built around delicate piano and their powerful, yearning voice, Shurbet sings about the tough relationship between herself and her former drug use. Lines like “My thoughts keep getting worse and worse / The Xanax I put in your purse / Might kill me, but I will not hurt” just cut incredibly deep, and you can feel the hurt in her voice as the song swirls to a beautiful climax. While “Assignment Song” was a solid introduction, “Paint” is so much deeper than that in the way that it displays a level of vulnerability that is unmatched in today’s musical landscape. Check out the music video directed by Mowgly Lee below:
