Review Summary: Blows other releases out of the water.
It reminds me of furious tears and self-reflection; knowing I deserved better, but that I signed up for it and saw this coming. Bonnie Fraser captures the stage after heartbreak, the anger that squeezed my fists together, feeling stupid and self-righteous all at once. A while back, I listened to hundreds of breakup songs, and I don’t even like most of them anymore. They voiced what I felt during the period, and that was it—deleted from my playlist.
But Stand Atlantic brought me back. The release aligned with the time that the cold climate settles in for the winter, and I listened to
Skinny Dipping on the way to class while gusts of wind turned my cheeks pink. After just a few rotations, I mouthed along with the lyrics, my breath puffing out in cold clouds.
Relationships don’t usually end healthy. By the end, toxic personalities often lash out at each other. It’s no longer comforting to spend time with each other. “It’s like skinny dipping in my jeans. You get wet, but you don’t get clean,” Fraser explains. When I piece together the image, I imagine frigid lake water, a snowed-in cabin porch, dead leaves, and half-hearted smiles.
Nowadays, I don’t feel lost or upset. I’m fine on my own or with company. I’ve moved on. I feel secure enough to listen to the album with just a hint of nostalgia and leftover emotion. And, I connect with it.
Lavender Bones lets me grieve a little longer, in a more controlled way.
Bullfrog voices my complaints. The title track details how I felt when I knew the breakup was incoming.
Speak Slow tells me how to handle it.
Cigarette Kiss captures the atmosphere of my significant other taking all my energy.
Lost My Cool lets me, well, lose my cool.
Toothpick describes the pain, like papercuts “in my eyes.”
Burn in the Afterthought asks me what I’m supposed to do, now.
Clay revels in the pain, asks for more if it means your ex coming back.
Roses describes the rut that I fell in over a year ago.
"Tell me I'm a loaded gun. Tie me up and come undone," Fraser begs in
Lavender Bones.
Skinny Dipping is my pop punk album of the year. It synergizes punk rock tendencies and bubblegum pop in an enthusiastic release. It shows rapid and much needed improvement over their previous EP,
Sidewinder. Everyone should keep an eye on Stand Atlantic as rising stars in the scene.
