Casual Smart's 'Queen of Hearts' shows off the band's subtlety and adaptability.

By lloydbolton52 on June 25, 2024

The second single from the Cardiff band introduces two new voices to their signature warm sound.

Words: Lloyd Bolton

Cardiff five-piece Casual Smart are back with new single 'Queen of Hearts.' Following up debut release 'It Doesn't Get Any Easier,' which caught our ear when the band made the Green Man Rising longlist, this new single once more shows their ability to craft intricately gentle songs around earnest feeling and warm instrumentation. Soft guitars float throughout, creating a fuzz commensurate with the naïve uncertainty expressed in the lyrics, "It hurts the same with every girl, but I can't get out the words to say it's over… I hope it's over." The track also shows off the group's flexibility, introducing lead vocals from Emily Beal and Evan Jones.

The joy of this band's music is their capacity to use the subtlest of effects to maximum impact. This track is occasionally permeated by soft pushes of clarinet, rounding out the frayed edges created by the guitars. Vocal details create a similar contrast, the meandering ideas sharpening with a sudden a capella moment as layered voices sing out, "Go to bed and don't you cry, Got our wings now, we can fly." This moment draws us into a spotlight instrumental, a conclusion to the lyrics fleshed out instrumentally. Some brief guitar noodling adds a degree of hairiness to the composition before a long fade-out gently lets the air out of the song, a final invitation to intimacy with the listener.