Dead Giveaway (EP) - Colby (Pop) This week we have the privilege to review the sensational artist colby!’s first EP, titled “Dead Giveaway.” This sonically cohesive album is a master class in songwriting and production, delivering five certifiable Top 40 bops that gave us Billie Eilish vibes the whole way through. With a commanding presence, poetic lyrics and exquisite mixing and mastering, we don’t exaggerate when we say that colby! is a powerhouse destined for greatness. But before we tuck into the project, let’s talk a little about the artist.
Hailing from Forth Worth, Texas, colby! spent her childhood surrounded by live music. At eight, our artist was diagnosed with severe dyslexia, which required three years of intensive therapy to help quiet her mind and help her to read. Through all of this, she clung to creative pursuits, with passions including singing, writing, performing, painting and even baking. She began writing at 14 with brother RJ Johnson—her producer (we see the Billie Eilish comparison is even more apt).
With debut EP “Dead Giveaway”, colby! is recognizing a lack of depth in relationships—be they romantic or platonic. “You’re putting in the effort to keep tings going, but it’s clear the other person isn’t meeting you halfway,” colby! explains, “and they’re unlikely to change.” The logical endpoint becomes ending the relationship and going your own way. Since the release of the first single from the project, colby! has found herself featured on Amazon Music's Breakthrough Pop, sad girl vibes, Hits Different; Spotify's Fresh Finds Pop, Fresh Finds; and Apple Music's INDIY, New In Indie, New In Pop, and New In Alternative.
As to colby!’s goal with her music, it’s quite simple—she wants her fans screaming along in her car and using her music as an escape. What will encourage her fans to do just that is the rawness and passion colby! expresses in her vocal, enhanced throughout by a distress effect that adds a welcome bit of grit to the productions. That grit inhabits the instrumentals as well, which each have a great driving force propelling them along, paired with a 1, 2 “boom, clap” percussion, which itself lends to some anthemic vibes.
Each track is single worthy, which made it really hard to pick our favorite of the collection. For us, “Break Me Twice” wins by a hair, with incredibly compelling lyrics and a passionate vocal delivery rivalling any pop contemporary. The track spins a tail rooted in relationship toxicity, with both parties brewing for an argument and perfectly capable of damaging the other without a second thought. If colby! wants her fans (which we count ourselves among) screaming in the car with her, this is the one.
The most unique of the cuts is another favorite, “Moving On”, which feels pared down in comparison with the rest of the EP, dripping with melancholy about the futility of letting a certain person go—they keep on getting back in line. colby!’s voice sits in an intoxicating reverb paired with a slinky delivery that casts a spell. She’s restrained on this one, the vocals close and intimate. The track is delightfully haunting.
But in all honesty this is a ‘no skips’ project and each song is going to be someone’s favorite. Keep an eye on colby! and RJ, they are ones to watch.
Tracks:
Dead Giveaway
Gone To Bed
Break Me Twice
Moving On
Doing What I Can