New Music: Eliza Edens – Hot & Mean

Eliza Edens looks at missteps and misadventures in relationships on Hot & Mean, another confessional cut from their upcoming Death Drive LP.

Brooklyn-based Edens doesn’t hide behind coyness and euphemisms as they take others – and themself – to task about love, sex, and relationships. Finding that uncertain space where the three don’t connect as you’d might want for yourself, the song looks at where the balance is out; you are where you think you want to be, but can’t convince yourself that’s not necessarily a good thing.   

Edens sets that within an arrangement linking 70s and 80s folk mood-scapes to modern indie, warm and emotive, the melody having a pop attitude to it that sits surprisingly well with the tell-it-like-it-is lyrics.

“Hot & Mean is a stream-of-consciousness exploration of queer situationships, the online culture of lurking, and the revolving door of dopamine highs and lows that modern convenience culture causes,” says Edens.

“The chorus is as much directed at myself than it is to anyone else. I hope we can all be sloths and move at the speed of geologic time, at least every once in a while.”

Death Drive is set for release on the 30th of October, 2026, and you can currently pre-order a limited-edition black vinyl version of the LP on Bandcamp. Hot & Mean is streaming on Spotify and SoundCloud.

Following the album, Eliza Edens plays a series of live dates mid-November, starting in Philadelphia and finishing up in Providence (Rhode Island), via New York. For up-to-date tour and album news, follow Edens on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.

Header photo by Emilio Herce