Toronto-based pop experimentalist Meg Remy, better known as U.S. Girls, shared Monday the opening track from her forthcoming album Heavy Light, the follow-up to her enchanting collection of pop character studies In A Poem Unlimited. In a statement, Remy explains that unlike Poem, Heavy Light looks more inward, more concerned with the self than others.
“4 American Dollars” scintillates with the groove of ‘70s pop, dipped in Remy’s signature irony and scathing wit. Its accompanying video (dir. Emily Pelstring and Remy) is stark in color, as many multi-colored lips dance around the screen and show hidden dollars, slot machines and mirrors hidden within their mouths. By the end, a bunch of green-screened dancers exit the backdrop, now hopping in their green morph suits.
Like any good U.S. Girls track, “4 American Dollars” contends subliminally with societal pressures and the complexities of life, doing so with a razor-sharp tongue and eschewing eye-roll-worthy obviousness. If the Heavy Light singles thus far are any indication, the album is going to be just as dissectible and effortlessly catchy as Poem.
We recently named U.S. Girls one of the best live acts of the 2010s. Check out a 2018 interview with Remy about their shocking live performances. You can also check out the video for “4 American Dollars” below. Heavy Light is out via 4AD March 6.