Loviet continues down a path toward being synonymous with summer vibes. The third single from their upcoming album, following previously released hits of “Jawbreaker” and “Dullshine,” “Chemical” goes big on the nostalgia; capturing Natalie Lynn’s larger-than-life superstardom as she follows in the footsteps of Debbie Harry and Madonna, especially with a new video that plays out like an extended dream sequence between Cameron Frye and Sloane Peterson.
Where “Dullshine” and “Jawbreaker” look at the darker side of the music industry—being weighed down in the fog of someone else’s shadow and the sense that when the victories do come they feel hallow—”Chemical” has a glimmer of light to it, albeit one she’s looking back at. The song, produced by Anton DeLost, is a catchy look back at times that sparkled with all the excitement of youth. Of course, that also implies that those times are all behind her.
“I wanted to capture some of ‘Chemical’s nostalgia through its music video and allow the lyrics to do the rest. Sort of like an homage to all the funny carefree teenage times I had with my friends,” says Natalie Lynn (aka Loviet). “It was so fun to make and relive those moments of your first drink, first cigarette, first love.
“I feel a heaviness with all of those memories looking back now. Those experiences are the most I think we ever feel, so I really wanted to capture the juxtaposition in the video of the grown-up side where I’m all alone and reminiscing, numb in comparison. Maybe I have everything I wanted in life, but I’ll never have that again.”
Loviet retroactively doubles down on the longing for happier days, considering that “Chemical” was written in the comparatively blissful pre-pandemic days of 2019. At the time, Loviet had just freshly arrived in Toronto. She had just begun turning out co-write with local artists, “Chemical” was one of those co-writes, a result of working with songwriter/artist Nathan Ferraro.
“Nathan was actually the lead singer and writer of the band Midway State, who I’m a huge fan of. It made this co-write super exciting off the bat,” says Loviet. “This song just encapsulated my upbringing and the things that shaped me today.”
Shortly after they began collaborating Ferraro imparted a very particular bit of wisdom to Natalie Lynn that had a major impact on the way she approached the song: “Writing is easy if you have something to say.” It’s the sort of maxim that seems so fundamental to communication that it should go without saying but, more often than not, it proves to be the lynch-pin to any good song. It helped Loviet cut through the vibe of the song with the razors edge of a message.
“[It] sounds so on the surface but it actually hits sooo different after being in co-write after co-write and humming and haw-ing,” says Natalie. “But this song just had a voice of its own, the ups and the downs of some of the best times, and mental health as a whole. Especially when no one was talking about it while I was growing up?
“The two of us had such similar stories and we connected this track, and I’m so excited about how it turned out.”
The video gets treated to a similarly double-edged sword: as cool as it looks to jump into a pool with a Squire Strat, you still have worry about having jumped into a pool with a Squire Strat in the end.
“I got the guitar from a really nice guy on Kijiji and his last words were, ‘I’m just happy this guitar is going to a musician with will actually use it,’ and then I threw it into a pool,” laughs Loviet. “But it’s sitting pretty, drying out in a my ridiculously hot apartment. Might save it.”
“Chemical” is set to be released as part of Loviet’s upcoming album sometime later this year.