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Photo: Jess Gleeson

If you haven’t heard of merci, mercy yet, get ready for her to become a household name in the alt-pop scene. The Sydney-based singer-songwriter, born Mercedes Thorne, released her debut EP no thank you, no thanks in 2020 and has kept that initial spark going with a string of singles and remixes since then. Set against a backdrop of vivacious and upbeat instrumentals, her lyrics often detail personal struggles with issues like mental health and addiction, establishing her as an unapologetically honest artist with a knack for turning heavy thoughts into bubbly pop anthems. Her latest release, “Into You,” arrives ahead of her forthcoming sophomore EP, slated for a September 30 release, and wistfully reflects on a past relationship, turning what could have been a moody ballad into a soaring bedroom pop stunner. 

In arguably her catchiest single yet, merci, mercy manages to keep us tapping our feet and nodding our heads to the woeful musings of a breakup wound that’s still healing. The song’s production starts off sparse by design, layering a wiry acoustic guitar and single synth note over a simple electronic high-hat as she asks, “Why did you have to drive so fast / I thought that we were gonna last / I told my friends that you were bad for me / And all they could do was agree.” Suddenly, the chorus explodes into an infectiously catchy hook, with her candy-coated voice floating atop a flourishing soundscape. From then on, we hear a wider array of instrumentals coming in and out of the song: a more prominent bassline, various electric guitars and synths, double-time clapping, and more keep the single moving and dynamic. These elements are hallmarks of the bedroom pop and alt-pop genres, but merci, mercy’s buttery vocals along with production choices as vibrant as her hair ensure that the song becomes anything but trite. 

“Into You” is another example of merci, mercy’s ability to playfully balance melancholy lyrics with contagiously danceable melodies. At just under three minutes, the song is a snappy and promising snippet of what's to come from the rising star.

Listen to "Into You" below: