Initially launched as a duo at the onset of COVID, Shallowhalo is now the solo venture for Allyson Camitta to experiment within Brooklyn’s ever-growing synth-pop scene, as led by figureheads such as The Dare. In fact Camitta even tapped that project’s Harrison Patrick Smith on Shallowhalo’s 2022 debut No Fun, which reconfigured sounds from the bygone Hi-NRG and Italo-disco scenes to fit more modern musical conventions.
Today, Shallowhalo returns with a new single called “Racecar,” which lands somewhere between ’80s synth music and a modern hyperpop sensibility that wouldn’t balk at the idea of using Kesha as a reference point (or, y’know, Ke$ha). Mixed by Fcukers’ co-producer Ivan Berko and featuring producer Blush on backing vocals, the track has all the plasticky synths and hedonistic energy of Animal, albeit with a more sober outlook. “‘Racecar’ is about being addicted to the chase; chasing glamor, chasing validation, chasing a person who will never love you back the way you want,” shares Camitta. “The song moves like a panic attack you want to dance through.”
Check out the Persia-directed video below, which I suppose also brings the tail end of the aughts to mind via Shallowhalo’s dress composed of the contents of her CD wallet.
