New Music: Mermaid Island – Panic Button

Alex MacDonald and her Mermaid Island bandmates are calm and in control on Panic Button from their self-titled LP.

Here, as on the album as a whole, Mermaid Island draw from some classic punk, folk-aligned and 00s pop-punk sources on Panic Button, weaving an individual aesthetic that will appeal to fans of The Distillers, The Bronx, and – in its most euphoric and unrestrained moments – Flogging Molly. This is music that reflects life at its most chaotic and cathartic, melodic at times, not always pretty, full of passion and integrity, and four hearts filled with rock and roll.

“On the surface this song is about being cryogenically frozen yet still conscious and watching your loved ones get old, wither away and die without being able to communicate,” says MacDonald. “At its core, it’s really about feeling trapped, being so desperate for connection and the painful realization of mortality and loss.”

“This song almost didn’t make the record; I thought it was too much of a ‘slow’ song and didn’t fit the energy of the band, but I was wrong. It turned out to be the emotional centerpiece, and has become a lot of people’s favorite song on the record.

Mermaid Island was released on the 12th of June and can be streamed on Bandcamp and Spotify. For details on how to pick up the album on vinyl via Anxious and Angry, connect with Mermaid Island on Instagram or TikTok.