Blondshell is the mononymous debut LP from Sabrina Teitelbaum as Blondshell and it is – much like everything this week – another magnificent set of songs and deliveries. There is a lot of restraint on the songs, which makes it all the more impactful when she really lets go and screams it out. This record really deserves to be heard far and wide.
Months ago, I thought it was obvious that Sabrina Teitelbaum—better known by her stage name, Blondshell—was going to be a big deal by April. However, I might have undersold Blondshell’s starpower potential at the time, as she just performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon before her self-titled, debut album is even officially out. Her rise to indie stardom has been impressive, and joyous, to watch from afar. Not only is she a no-brainer Best of What’s Next; she’s also a no-brainer future festival headliner, Saturday Night Live musical guest and critical darling. It’s hard to do anything but root for her in every sense of the word, as she exudes a mountain of cool and is malleable enough to fully embrace whatever contemporary indie’s current, or her own eclectic, evolving taste, warrants from her song writing.
‘Salad‘ is a standout, a rollicking tune that rattles with barreling drums, chugging guitars and pianos, and quivering and cathartic vocals that simmer with rage before exploding. Echoing elements of Sharon Van Etten or The Replacements, but has an infectious sound all of its own and gives a sneak peek into her world. A vengeful fantasy about poisoning a sinister abuser that got off with a slap on the wrist. “Look what you did, you’ll make a killer of a Jewish girl,” she sings confessionally. It’s an earth-shaking, empowering anthem that turns trauma into triumph.
In the past few years, Sabrina Teitelbaum AKA Blondshell has transformed into a songwriter without fear. The hook-filled songs on her self-titled debut are clear-eyed statements of and about digging your way towards confidence, self-possession, and relief. All of this is powered by brilliant, crystalline melodies, and gigantic choruses that are wrapped with shredding guitars.
To accompany her self-titled debut record, Sabrina Teitelbaum, aka Blondshell, has already released the single “Joiner,” a tender, soaring paean of glittering acoustic wonder. “Joiner” is hypnotic, with hooks that stick with you for the long haul. What makes Teitelbaum’s work so compelling is how she is able to inject such poignant, specific imagery atop arrangements fluttering with such a recognizable alchemy and groove. “You’ve been running around L.A. with trash / Sleeping in bars with a gun in your bag / Asking, ‘Can I be someone else?’” she sings with the grandeur of a seasoned veteran who’s mastered a perfect verse. It’s clear that Teitelbaum is fixing to be a powerhouse in indie rock, and, if “Joiner” is any indication, the trajectory of Blondshell knows no ceiling.
The hype behind Blondshell is real. At SXSW last month, she stole the show—so much so that she took home the festival’s Grulke Prize for Developing U.S. Act. With over 1,500 acts in town, all vying for stage time, label notice and new fans, taking home that award has only become a bigger accolade in recent years. It’s no surprise that Blondshell won it, though.
Blondshell was born in New York City and raised across Midtown Manhattan by a single father. Early on, he introduced her to the wisdom of Bob Dylan and his influence helped her develop a childhood obsession with the Rolling Stones. She started writing breakup songs as a kid and, even back then, she thought she had the chops to make it as a real musician. But of course, with childhood dreams came rose-tinted glasses and, by the time Blondshell was old enough to drive, doubt crept in about whether or not she could get her music noticed based on her talent alone. “When I was a kid, I was like, ‘If you’re able to sing, that’s it,’” she tells me over the phone. “I didn’t know enough. Then, when I got older, I was like, ‘Oh, it requires really hard work, a ton of luck and lots of things that are really out of your control.’ It set in that it was definitely not a given and was actually unlikely that I would get to do it as a job.”
The Fat Angel Sings 