Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Soren Bryce recently announced her debut EP as Tummyache. Following up on the first single “In Between“, the alternative rock artist is back with a hell of track that sounds explosive and cathartic. Like most of the EP – and like her moniker suggests it – “Median” deals with the side effects of severe physical anxiety. If the first single was still balancing between defeatism and hopefulness, this second offering brims with impulsivity. Fuzzy and grunge and 90s rock-infused, it sounds like the straw that broke the camel’s back; this particular moment when the emotions and existential angst take over and you just want to scream and break everything. The track also comes with a glorious video which was directed by Jim Canty. Watch below.

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Whilst this may be Soren Bryce’s first single under the moniker tummyache, she’s been performing actively under her own name for 6 years. The difference between the two monikers is that tummyache arose from Bryce’s need to “explore a new set of emotions she was feeling whilst living in Brooklyn.” If lead single “In Between” is anything to go by, then these emotions are largely laced with a pessimism, yet a will to overcome and to thrive, a drive to “feel better.”

As a track, “In Between” has inflexions of Wolf Alice, stemming from the heavy opening section. Bryce gives the listener no time to acclimatise to her sound, rather launching us into the throng with a strong opening riff. However, it doesn’t rely solely on the power of the lead guitar. The song ebbs and flows; a quality that comes from this magical and magnetic lull that takes over the track. Flitting between moments of raw guitar-driven power and moody moments forced onwards by the momentum and cadence of Soren Bryce’s voice, “In Between” strikes a balance between defeatism and hopefulness.

Bryce’s voice is surprisingly deft and light, with an inherent honesty that artists like Laura Marling seem to have. Her vocals possess a crisp openness that contrasts the warped and wrangling guitars to great effect. The emotional impact of the track is also aided by the fact that it’s delivered almost as a sudden outburst of emotion – a pouring, a spilling over – that feels like two and a half minutes of hitting rock bottom and crying for help from there. This is only accentuated by the repeated chant of “I want to feel better” that sees the track out.

To top it all off, the video accompaniment sees a collage of home videos and snippets of Soren Bryce’s friends and family as a dedication to them for “making the past two years a little easier.” Watch below.

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