With the current climate and mainstream media being what it is, it’s always empowering to see the emergence of a strong female protagonist in any area of the creative arts. Front-woman Alex Luciano of the New York based two-piece Diet Cig, is just that. Their debut album ‘Swear I’m Good At This’ is an incredibly relatable narrative of an average teenager growing up. Filled to the brim with the vivid imagery of suburban life, the album doubles up as a life-affirming pat on the shoulder that tells you ‘everything will be okay’.
Album opener ‘Sixteen’ begins with an airy, sickly sweet and innocent tone that’s almost a distraction from the lyrical content. As Luciano wails the line “I dated a boy with my own name, it was weird in the back of his truck, moaning my own name while trying to fuck” the sense of innocence is immediately lost. One can almost imagine Luciano literally grinning with her tongue in her cheek before calling out “ready” to drummer Noah Bowman as they come crashing into the latter half of the song.
The follow up track ‘Bite Back’ demonstrates the almost doubled-up vocals Alex uses throughout the album as well as the up-tempo, garage punk that Diet Cig have created for themselves. ‘Bite Back’ is also the first track on the album with lyrical awkwardness, being nearly word for word the polar opposite of the phrase ‘too big for your boots’.
‘Swear I’m Good At This’ constantly flitters between raising and dropping its guard; at times we’re invited to see the defencelessness and vulnerability of Luciano’s thoughts or inner monologue. That said, when the barrier is up we’re faced with a strong, intelligent and adept young woman who’s poised and ready to diplomatically get her point across.
‘Apricots’, ‘Bath Bomb’ and ‘I Don’t Know Her’ allow a glimpse of Luciano’s metaphorical diary. All three tracks portray a slightly hesitant and equivocal character wearing their heart on their sleeve whilst addressing a short list of insecurities. Raw emotions aside, both ‘Apricots’ and ‘Bath Bomb’ wouldn’t sound out of place on the soundtrack to a cult indie film which only adds to their overwhelming charm and affability.
Leaving behind the youthful lyrical content and moving into more mature themes usually associated with the shift into adulthood are ‘Link In Bio’ and ‘Maid Of The Mist’. Both of these tracks come with important messages that couldn’t be more relevant in this day and age with the constant sexualisation of women in the media. ‘Link In Bio’ is the second track to have been released from the album and features the aforementioned protagonist sounding more confident than ever. “I’m not being dramatic; I’ve just fucking had it with the things that you say you think I should be” Luciano spits. ‘Maid Of The Mist’, which like ‘Road Trip’ incorporates the use of synths, also carries a strong memo: “I am bigger than the outside shell of my body and if you touch it without asking then you’ll be sorry” Alex yells with her most aggressive performance on the album.
Closing out their awe-inspiring debut album is the first single to have been released from it, ‘Tummy Ache’. Although it’s inconceivably hard to pick a favourite track from this record, Diet Cig really have saved the best for last when it comes to driving home a message that sticks as well as having an annoyingly infectious hook. It’s no secret that the punk and hardcore music scenes, amongst others, have for a long time been something of a ‘boys club’ and fortunately that’s changing for the better; ‘Tummy Ache’ navigates its way through a tale of being female in the punk scene and rebelling against its patriarchy. Building up into a massive crescendo that’s hard to believe has come from only two musicians, ‘Tummy Ache’ sees out the album with the words “my stomach hurts, it’s hard to be a punk while wearing a skirt.”
‘Swear I’m Good At This’ is a quirky, ‘coming of age’ adventure brimming with raw emotion as well as being a stunning debut achievement. Diet Cig’s combination of relatable tales teeming with ambition, insecurity and contemplation, together form one of the most creative, straight talking and exciting albums of the year thus far.
JAMES DAVENPORT