LOUD WOMEN is excited to premiere ‘Cruise The Town’ from Brooklyn-based five-piece Ok Cowgirl. The track is the latest glimpse into their upcoming album, Rhinestone Cowgirl, due out 21 August via Easy Does It Records.
Alongside the premiere, LOUD WOMEN’s US Editor Reva May caught up with singer and songwriter Leah Lavigne for an exclusive interview, exploring the story behind Rhinestone Cowgirl and the inspiration for ‘Cruise The Town’.
What was the inspiration behind your upcoming album, Rhinestone Cowgirl?
I wrote Rhinestone Cowgirl while looking back on where I’ve come from, and thinking about where I’m aimed. It’s about how I’ve gone against the grain, second-guessed myself, and tried to build a life that makes me feel seen and supported. This record is also largely about how life is not fair, and the way my understanding of this cliche has deepened over the years. It’s about losing loved ones, it’s about working really hard and not getting what I wanted or what I thought I deserved, and it’s about observing everyone around me have these same experiences or their own set of hardships. It’s a record really rooted in empathy and love, songs I wrote as companions on a journey of healing.
Can you describe your songwriting process?
When I write I start at the beginning. I’ll just follow a few words or a melody that feels inspiring one step at a time in whatever direction feels right. If I get stuck or start to feel lost it’s usually because I’ve started overthinking. In which case, I go back to the beginning. Playing through what I’ve written so far from the beginning, where that first spark of inspiration was, usually helps me catch a wave of momentum. And I just ride the wave as far as it goes. Sometimes whole stanzas will spill out, other times it’s just a word or two, or a rhythm, or a melody strung together with gibberish sounds that feel right. Eventually when I feel the momentum is truly gone, I step away; and I won’t revisit a song until I feel a spark of excitement about it days, weeks, or sometimes years later. Then I’ll decide to keep it exactly how it is, or to jump back into the same creative process for revisions, or occasionally to tool with it in a more intellectualized way.
What inspires you most as an artist, both musically and outside of music?
I love people. I love observing them and listening to their stories. I’m fascinated by different perspectives and outlooks on life.
Tell us more about ‘Cruise The Town’. How did the song come together, and what do you hope listeners take away from it?
This song was musically co-written with the guys in my band. I wrote the lyrics while reflecting on my relationship to control after a fortune teller at my friend’s birthday party immediately clocked me as “someone who likes to be in control” and suggested I might be happier if I tried having a looser grip. I’m not sure what I hope listeners take away from it, but maybe there are some type A folks like myself that will find some useful encouragement in it.
Live dates:
7/17 – Brooklyn, NY – Union Pool
8/22 – Brooklyn, NY – Baby’s All Right (LP Release show)
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