“Just Kids are a duo comprised of long-time best friends, songwriter/producer Rachel Still (she/her) and drummer/producer Maxie Cheer (they/he). Having released their standalone single ‘hurt’ in November 2022, the pair’s current career highlight is ‘being sent a fire emoji by Phoebe Bridgers for our boygenius cover’ on Instagram. Between Maxie drumming for Bimini and Kate Nash, and Rachel’s vocals featuring on records by artists such as Bring Me The Horizon and Frank Turner, the pair continue to push their creative boundaries in their new mini-EP.
Tied together by the theme of the introspection old photos bring, Just Kids began this new era with the release of singles ‘california’ and ‘parking lot’. Vocalist Rachel found utilising photographs from her own childhood as the artwork explored these themes further:
‘I realised after finishing this collection of songs that they all reference a photograph at some point, directly in the lyrics of two tracks and as a start point for the other. I think I’d had a big period of reflection on my past and my childhood, growing up and getting to a point where you can look back at these different versions of yourself and start to form your own narrative on it.’
Still continues by describing how this idea was brought into the present while on a trip to California in March. This is where the EP’s eventual artwork came into existence completely by accident:
“I was on holiday with my friends earlier this year whilst making the ‘california’ music video, we were driving back from the desert late at night and I accidentally took this photo on my phone. When I looked back through my camera roll, me and my friends all agreed that this image had to be a cover or something of that sort. That’s when the idea really wrapped itself up, which is magical as it was on a trip of a lifetime and taken at an exact moment when I felt so safe, so seen by the friends around me, having just returned to the same place I went on holiday as a child. I’d had this beautiful full-circle moment where I got to realise the visuals I’d had in my head for so many years, and return there as the person I am now with friends I love, whilst seeing the inner-child I was writing about flash before me at the same time.”
I received a press release for an EP recently, which seemed quite familiar to me. Upon further inspection, I realized that we had shared the opening track of the EP on our compilation album, START THE TRACK: VOL. III. The EP is a masterpiece, brimming with energy, amazing guitar riffs, and a perfect blend of indie rock. I have been listening to it quite often these days and thoroughly enjoying every bit of it. Although I forgot to share it earlier, my bookmarks came to my rescue and reminded me of it again. I strongly recommend you take a few minutes from your busy schedule and give this EP a listen. I am sure you won’t be disappointed!
You can follow the band on: