Maggie Rogers' songs have a tendency to catch you off guard the more you listen to them; even the star-making "Alaska" (you know, the one that made Pharrell cry) reveals secrets years later. There are subtle twists in the production that pop when you meet them in another frame of mind, lyrics that hit different.
"That's Where I Am," the first single from Surrender (out July 29), is a chunky-boot strut through a floral pop fantasia. Stuttering electronics and handclaps underpin the momentum that builds through the song's first minute, but then Rogers opens a floodgate of sleek guitar distortion, bassy synth and gated reverb on crashing drums. The overall effect has a major '90s Alterna-Rock Chick Energy — crunchy production, big guitars, swirling but sturdy motion, restless and unafraid emotion. Rogers, in a chilling performance that pushes her voice to stadium-rocking levels, is more than up to the task. She's having an absolute blast, and in the accompanying music video — featuring cameos from musicians David Byrne and Hamilton Leithauser, plus photographer Quil Lemons — that joy radiates from Rogers as she romps through her adopted NYC home.
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