Some songs carry the weight of a whole life lived on the move. For Alex Moran, the London-born, Brisbane-based singer-songwriter behind Quiet as a Mouse, “Cocaine Soul” is exactly that kind of track. Written during his early twenties while living in Edinburgh, it’s been sitting in the vault waiting for its moment, and arriving now as one of the lead previews from his upcoming sophomore album Nostalgia is fine…but…, that moment feels well worth the wait. The track hits the ground running and doesn’t ease up. It pulls from the deep wells of ’60s and ’70s blues while crashing headfirst into the raw territory of grunge and punk, and the collision is thrilling. The song feels lived-in and urgent all at once, the kind of thing that sounds like it was written not at a desk but in the thick of something real. Each verse unfolds like its own short story before spilling open into a bold, anthemic chorus built for volume and repetition. It’s the sort of chorus that keeps pulling you back, not because it’s cheap and catchy, but because it genuinely earns every decibel it demands.
Moran has spoken about how years of moving around, from Edinburgh to Adelaide to Hobart to Brisbane, shaped his writing in ways even he didn’t always notice, feeding a diversity of styles and emotional registers that few artists can pull off without sounding scattered. “Cocaine Soul” is solid proof of that range. It feels restless and hungry, the work of a songwriter who has genuinely lived inside the emotions he puts to tape. Personally, this is the kind of indie rock release that reminds you why the genre still matters. Moran writes with the confidence of someone who has nothing to prove and everything to say, and the song is all the better for it.
The upcoming album Nostalgia is fine…but… is described as ten songs covering diverse corners of rock while staying sonically connected, all rooted in Moran’s love for raw, punk, DIY spirit. If “Cocaine Soul” is any indication, it’s shaping up to be one of the more compelling indie rock records to drop this year. Do yourself a favor and follow Quiet as a Mouse on Spotify, Apple Music, Instagram, and YouTube right now. Add “Cocaine Soul” to the playlists you actually care about, the ones you blast on a late drive or pass along to a friend who still believes a great guitar track can change the mood of an entire room. Moran is the kind of artist who rewards the listeners who stick around and dig deeper, and with Nostalgia is fine…but… dropping on 29 May, there’s no better time to get in before everyone else catches on.
