REVIEW: Ali Slater - “Over It (ft. Jacky Vincent)” Single
If you didn’t know any better, after listening to her, you’d think Ali Slater has been on the rise within the pop/punk scene for five plus years at this point. She sounds so seasoned and well-defined that it would be a surprise to no one if she had spent the last few years bubbling under, but was about to breakout in a big way. However, that is not the case. Though she has been a musician for most of her life, Slater has only been pursing music professionally for nearly two years, since the start of COVID. Her first two singles, “Without You” and “Kiss In The Rain”, both produced by Matt Squire, are rough around the edges but show Slater’s massive potential as a vocalist, writer, and overall creative with the accompanying music video for the latter. Squire has worked with some of the biggest pop/rock-punk acts of the day, such as All Time Low, Krewella, 30H!3, Boys Like Girls, etc., so Slater was undoubtedly in good hands.
Slater’s new song, “Over It”, is her best yet. She takes cues from Demi Lovato’s first few albums and even some of Kelly Clarkson’s My December-era stuff, using similar vocal inflections and vocal production techniques to Demi but completely making it her own. The track, ironically released on Valentine’s Day, is an anthem for all the single people trying their best to stay off of social media on this lonely mid-winter holiday while those who are in a relationship proudly shows off their partner for the world to see (as they should, by the way). She references the hook-up culture that has plagued at least two generations of social media users and how finding someone to commit to is like finding a needle in a haystack. The truth is that everyone has their walls up so high that finding an emotional connection is so difficult, and while you wallow in “is this working out?” or “am I good enough?” (or both), there is always someone who satisfies the other persons physical/sexual desire on the other end of the phone. Slater, who has seemingly fallen victim to this herself, is at least having fun with it and playfully tossing the idea of real love aside, at least for now. She sings, “My heart is starting to go numb, cause men are dumb” as a playful jab with a little wink, as if to say that, while she’s tired of them, she’s not opposed to a man who ISN’T dumb. Where do you find one of those, exactly? Asking for a friend.
Photo by Carl Timpone
While she’s not reinventing the wheel here, Slater follows a similar messaging to what Lovato and even Ariana Grande and Rihanna have done in past work. Grande, while happily married now, did it with the one-two punch of “thank u, next” and “7 Rings”, a few years back, going down the route of self-love that involves a ton of retail therapy, while Lovato goes back and forth between “Hell yeah, I’m independent” and “Oh but nevermind I want someone” all the time, which is fine. Slater, however, is standing her ground on her declarative statement, going the extra step to ensure she gets some peace of mind; “Another day, another one done. I’m getting rid of all my apps today. Will they ever want more than fun? Who are we kidding… does it ever work out anyway?” She got caught up in the hype and excitement of new people and all the possibilities, but she’s done with that; “I bought your bullshit, I’m so damn over it.”
Musically, it truly is her best yet, and that is partly due to collaborating with ex Falling In Reverse member, Jacky Vincent, who delivers a kick ass instrumental solo in the bridge. With a resurgence of pop/punk led by Machine Gun Kelly, Willow, Travis Barker, Jxdn, and so many others, Slater is a welcome addition to that mix and could easily fit in with all of those heavy-hitters. She has the look, the voice, and the presence to be the TikTok generations version of that one chick who sang about sk8tr boi’s and relationships being complicated. She did pretty alright for herself, and Slater is well on her way to a fruitful career in pop/punk.
WHERE TO FIND ALI SLATER
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