Brooklyn-based pop-punks Charly Bliss made serious waves with their 2017 debut, Guppy. The album was a throwback to early-’90s grunge and mid-’90s bubblegum pop — think Letters to Cleo, but Grohl on drums. We called it “the perfect spring soundtrack,” noting the palpable hope of the lyrics reaching through the darker, honest lyrics. It was perfect for spring, but Guppy was also my soundtrack to that entire year.
“Heaven,” the band’s first new release since Guppy, maintains that same quality of reaching for hope. “Heaven” might be Charly Bliss’ first love song — if we’re defining “love” like most pop acts do, the kind of romantic infatuation where the person you love is like a sweetener brightening up everything dark around you. “Heaven” is little fuzzier and rocking, leaning more toward the punk and grunge side of CB’s sound, but it’s a fun contrast with the lyrics. The love described in grunge songs is often twisted and toxic. This song proves that punk romance doesn’t have to be so mean. Sometimes it’s just laying in bed, pleasantly stoned, “Our eyes like quarters / Sweet spine / Someone’s calling / I don’t mind.”
Charly Bliss have been performing “Heaven,” along with several unreleased new songs, on solo tour dates this spring and summer. The band is currently gearing up to open for Death Cab for Cutie this fall.
Listen to “Heaven” above, and check out Charly Bliss’ upcoming tour dates here.
