At this point, it’s almost as much of a cliché as the term “sophomore slump” to address an artist’s sudden questioning of their career path somewhere around their fourth record—considering whether or not all of this will mean anything to anyone in a decade or so. In the hands of PVRIS’s Lyndsey Gunnulfsen, this conversation never seemed to be a question of her own confidence level but rather of the industry surrounding her, which she’d been thrust deeper into over the course of nearly a decade as her own fourth record, Evergreen, came to fruition.
“In our modern culture where everything is online, algorithm-based, and instantaneous, it feels like timelessness, longevity, and connection could someday become dying concepts,” Gunnulfsen astutely noted in a press release leading up to the album’s release, applying this wariness more broadly to our cultural moment outside of the sphere of music. It’s this concern which originally inspired the themes evident in the new record’s title of creating something that stands the test of time, while actively questioning the system that sets that test in place within the album’s lyrics. “More than ever, PVRIS has, and always will be, anti-formula, anti-virality, and anti-instant gratification,” she assured us.
At this point in her career, PVRIS is also savvy enough to realize that the most surefire way to establish a timeless hit is to crank out something fully unique and ahead of the curve—a goal Evergreen aggressively pursues across its 11 tracks frequently jutting out far beyond the parameters of electropop established on Gunnulfsen’s prior output. With the assistance of a highly qualified team to produce the record alongside her (Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda on the explosive “Take My Nirvana,” most notably), Evergreen proves time and again that it’s worthy of its title.
With the album out today via Hopeless Records, PVRIS walked us through the creation of each track. Stream it and read on for her words below.
1. ”I Don’t Wanna Do This Anymore”
“I Don’t Wanna Do This Anymore” is about observing the structures and systems we exist in and fearing the future if we continue on these paths and never slow down. Not wanting to participate in the machine but feeling so stuck in it and not wanting to get left behind.
2. “Good Enemy”
“Good Enemy” is about facing and taking ownership over yourself, being your own worst enemy…but also your best friend. This was the last song written for the album.
3. “Goddess”
“Goddess” is about female autonomy. I wanted whoever is listening to feel empowered in whichever body they occupy and to tap into their inner goddess! I had started the song before the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the countless bills being passed against the trans community, so this message feels even more relevant and important today.
4. “Animal”
“Animal” is all about defiance and breaking free of control, whether it’s from other people or from ourselves. It’s also through a wider lens and can be interpreted as defiance toward higher powers, government, the algorithms that run our lives, etc.
5. “Hype Zombies”
This song is sort of like the monologue of the dark side of your ego, as if its thoughts were personified or...zombie-fied.
6. “Take My Nirvana”
Pretty self-explanatory. Not letting the bad shit get you down and relentlessly fighting for your happiness. Made this with the iconic Mike Shinoda, who I love very much!
7. “Senti-Mental”
“Senti-Mental” is about realizing that I had been compartmentalizing my emotions in order to survive and move through life, emotional hardening.
8. “Headlights”
There was a period of making this album when I was visiting my hometown a lot. I spent a lot of time out in nature and was really calmed by driving around at night with the windows down. I loved the way winding roads with lush greenery looked when they were lit by headlights—it felt like a dream world that I wanted to jump into. This song was a way to try to capture that feeling.
9. “Anywhere But Here”
This song is about escapism in dark times and realizing that we’re running out of places and spaces to do that (i.e. nature). The illusion of safety and grieving home, whether it’s an actual space or an idea.
10. “Love Is A…”
I wanted to write a sexy and sultry love song that captured all facets of love, the dark parts and the beautiful. The cyclical nature of it all.
11. “Evergreen”
This was the first song I wrote for the album. I was up in Nevada City, snowed into a little house, and had a makeshift studio setting. At the time I was thinking a lot about exploitation in the entertainment industry and the glorification of youth in pop culture. Almost being 30, I was reflecting on my age and my place in the world, coming to terms with getting older and learning to embrace my longer journey and honoring that.
