Maybe We Can Play Pretend

Tennis “Ladies Don’t Play Guitar”

I’ve never had a grasp on Tennis’ identity as a band. I’m not totally sure if they do either. They definitely have an aesthetic – very clean and glossy, but also refined and not particularly flashy – but their personality is rather vague and seems to shift with whatever their inspiration happens to be in the moment. This is a good moment for them, though. “Ladies Don’t Play Guitar” has a sexy but understated late ‘80s/early ’90s groove – think “Justify My Love” by Madonna or “Back to Life” by Soul II Soul – and lyrics that are considerably more pointed and direct than you’d expect from a typically quite mellow and agreeable act. Alaina Moore’s vocal part isn’t particularly aggressive, but it’s clear that she’s pushing back against a lot of aggravating assumptions in her own way, and probably also challenging herself to say a bit more with her music. This is certainly the best song I’ve heard by them, so it’s a move in the right direction as far as I’m concerned.

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