Tennis’ cover of Brenda Lee’s ‘Is It True?’, which they have made available for free download on their website, is an ecstatic burst of pop heartbreak – a strong and catchy melody with blurred, frayed edges. Tickling the two minute mark, there is a lot of emotion concentrated in a very short amount of time, and in response the music feels joyfully shambolic but manages to still be very melodious. Alaina Moore’s vocals are powerful, but also sound bruised, perfectly suiting the tone of the song, and thankfully they are allowed to shine amongst the lo-fi fuzz of the instruments. A short, sweet, paean to sixties girl-groups and garage rock, ‘Is It True?’ beautifully expresses the painful teenage condition of being both angry and attitude-filled, and painfully vulnerable at the same time.
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