Roxanne de Bastion’s rock direction suits her. ‘Apocalypse Queen’ continues the change we enjoyed on ‘Simple Pleasures’, with a song celebrating human potential at the end of days.
Roxanne describes the single as being about embracing your strength and releasing your potential, possibly in time for humanity’s final moments. “If we’re going out, we’re going out loud!” is her explanation.
More on Roxanne de Bastion
Tony Visconti produced the single during Roxanne’s recording sessions in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Known for his work with David Bowie and T. Rex, Tony also contributes bass and backing vocals.
Saxophonist Donny McCaslin, guitarist Gerry Leonard and drummer Gunnar Olsen join the recording, with Kevin Killen working as engineer. Donny led the band on Blackstar, while Gerry’s collaborators include Suzanne Vega and Rufus Wainwright.
Roxanne describes working with Tony as “magical”. The sessions included Human Studios, where Bowie recorded Blackstar. She recalls Brooklyn’s industrial surroundings fitting the apocalyptic theme, alongside the pleasure of sharing stories between takes.
From ‘Skin’ to ‘Apocalypse Queen’
On ‘Skin’, gritty guitars accompanied Roxanne’s writing about suppressed frustration and the difficulty of speaking openly. Then ‘Simple Pleasures’ addressed consumption and automation through driving synths, angular riffs and lyrics borrowing the language of upgrades and marketing.
Roxanne wanted these recordings to capture the energy of her live performances. We have enjoyed the rougher textures on her recent releases, and ‘Apocalypse Queen’ gives us more to enjoy in this approach.
‘Apocalypse Queen’ review
The production is fantastic. It sounds raw and unfiltered, yet carefully judged. We enjoy how the production preserves the roughness. Roxanne’s voice is the star. We have heard her in rawer settings before, but her performance here feels more assured. We love hearing this confidence in her singing.
‘Apocalypse Queen’ is out now and features on Here Lies Human, arriving on 12th February 2027. Visit Roxanne’s official website or follow her on Instagram.
Photo credit: Talie Eigeland
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