The 90s called. They want us to come back to a simpler time where the music wasn’t always saccharine sweet, at least in the rock and alt rock world that is, but often had a point. A thought provoking point that was often fueled by whip smart lyrics and catchy notes.
The latest single from Ontario’s The Minimum Wage, “Everyone Is” is all of that plus a little bit of rock, a little bit of punk, and one hundred percent music gold.
On the song, the band says,
“We all consider ourselves victims of something – past traumas, the system, perception of reality – it’s how we deal with being “victimized” that defines us…do you run to social media and desperately seek validation? Do you put your head down and slog out day after day? Do you use it as a tool to better yourself? That’s pretty much the theme…”
With their 2022 release Small Stakes under the belt, The Minimum Wage focused on their live shows but the surprising result of that focus was new, crowd tested, songs.
Domani, guitarist and songwriter, says this about the songwriting for “Everyone Is”,
“The dynamics and dissonance are meant to mirror the overall theme, not to mention some borrowing from all the Matthew Good records being listened to at the time…”
The concise and engaging guitar based banger bridges the gap between punk and alt rock by pointing out our need for validation and our faults but it’s absolutely worth facing the mirror because everyone and everyone should be.
