When Ruby Fields said "I'm hungover again" we all felt that.
Although it may contain some really relatable lyrics and topical themes, 'Pretty Grim' comes from a much more personal experience for the young singer/songwriter.
After her astronomical rise to fame in the last couple of years, from busking on the streets to sold out shows and festivals, Ruby has been open about her experiences on having to adjust to the sudden pressures of fame.
“From memory I was a bit lost at the time and hadn’t felt anything in awhile. When you’re fresh out of high school and get shoved in front of the country with a megaphone you definitely make some cringe worthy mistakes," she said. “I threw myself in the deep end and saw some of the most heartbreaking and beautiful things."
'Pretty Grim' was first written back in 2018, just after her career had begun to take off. The song was finally recorded earlier this year in studios across the Tasman, being finished in her hometown of Byron Bay.
The lyrics perfectly encapsulate what it's like to feel aimless and uninspired, a feeling that many of us today will know all too well. Fields says that the song “targets mental health and not yet having found a balance with drinking and so on."
She delivers these lyrics with that classic Ruby Fields flair; it's pretty serious subject matter but with a grungy energy to turn it into a tune that you can blast and dance or sing your heart out to. Her style of confessional lyrics and passionate vocal performances over minimalistic guitar are turning her into something of a songbird for our disillusioned generation.
Despite these struggles with inadequacy and aimlessness, 'Pretty Grim' shows us that the 20-year old is back and "really determined to write new music". It's her first single since last year's EP Permanent Hermit, and has us super excited for whatever this young star will put out next.