"Queer hell" by Harrisonburg, Virginia based Hey, beautiful is a wonderful piece of punk folk art, stunning in it's subversive nature and it's ability to hold up a two way mirror. Artistically shiny in it's inner reach and societal scope and in it's brevity. It also has a sonic power built on simplicity. I always love an acoustic guitar as a sort of feral instrument instead of a pretty one. Always admired the power of an acoustic being kind of thrashed. Like Violent Femmes, Hey beautiful uses a spartan sound and ramps it up hard. The melody that sort of plays like a words through clenched teeth or, at least rolled eyes, is nonetheless beautiful and Daniel's Bellerose's vocals feel as purely candid as those acerbic pearls of truth.
Bellerose offers:
"'Queer hell' is the first single from my debut EP, "Queer hell is glittering". This project has allowed me to explore my queer identity more deeply through music, and to express my emotions, everything from rage to joy. Queer hell is the first step in that journey, a song about queer stereotypes, both positive and negative, and my desire to rise above them."
Rising above is an enlightened place to be. We live in a world were us being our authentic selves can be difficult without thick skins. Influencers whether it be the entertainment industry or social justice warriors seem all too often ready to push either stereotypes or use shame to tell us how we should think / act. Those who seek to influence seem to push people behind closed doors or into the light because the mob they are surreptitiously a part of has decided it is the right thing to do or because it is good for the bottom line. I want to live in a world were people love and respect other people because it is the right thing to do. To me, "Queer hell" is a lovely daring song that punches, makes you laugh, smile, maybe cry and ask yourself a hundred questions. Rise above indeed.
"Queer hell" by Hey, beautiful is Daniel Bellerose on vocals and acoustic guitar, Joseph Harder on drums and Valentin Prince on Electric Guitar.
-Robb Donker Curtius
THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:
bandcamp
Queer folk-punk to scream into your pillow at night
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