Recent This Is Happening stars CHVRCHES reach some incredibly ebullient heights with their romantic synth-pop sound — a fact which seems all the more remarkable when you consider the darkness that creeps into singer Lauren Mayberry’s lyrics. When SPIN spoke to the band last month, co-producer Iain Cook blamed the Glaswegian weather: “There’s a melancholy that comes from perpetual grayness and clouds and colds.” But in new single “Gun,” it’s quite clear that Mayberry is taking aim at a former lover: “Hi, hi — I have burned your bridges / I will be a gun and it’s you I’ll come for.” (Coincidentally, Scout Niblett recently released a song called “Gun” that is about the exact same thing.) It’s heavy stuff set to a wonderfully upbeat backbeat, of course. And as Stereogum points out, if you’re feeling burned over the fact that your favorite episodic fantasy epic took a break last week, you might salve yourself by revisiting CHVRCHES’ cover of the Game of Thrones theme. Stream “Gun” below, or at the CHVRCHES site. The U.K. single is out digitally and on pink vinyl on July 15.
