Betweenzone – “May Queen”

Betweenzone – “May Queen” – Single Review

It’s funny…when you think about it, for a band called Betweenzone, they’ve always had two very distinct sides to their personality and what they create.  There’s very little grey area when you listen to their music and very little overlap between the two realms they craft their tunes in – you’re either listening to a song that has the full intentions of being audible art that would interest a more niche audience, or you’re listening to Betweenzone drop another irresistible single-worthy track loaded with universal appeal.  Of course, you never really know which of those two categories any given Betweenzone song or record is going to fall into until you push play, but in the case of “May Queen,” it’s more towards the latter scenario.  They’ve got themselves another verifiable hit with what you’ll hear on “May Queen.”

To be completely clear – I like both of the main modes we tend to find Betweenzone in, truly.  Having said that, I’m no more immune to the sound of a great tune than any of you would be either.  Sure, an artistically-inclined track is almost always guaranteed to get my attention, and in many instances, might even prove to hold up longer on a playlist, given that most hooks anyone ever writes tend to draw upon diminishing returns over time and repeat spins – but…you’ve gotta give credit where credit is due too.  When Betweenzone finds that vein of accessibility in their music, they are capable of creating stunningly ambitious and addictive tunes…and I’d argue that’s exactly what they’ve got here with “May Queen.”

While both Dave M. Rile (Vocals/Synths/Programming/Production) and his musical cohort in EAST (Guitars/Vocals/Synths/Production) would likely be inclined to always push forward with what they’re capable of collectively, sometimes the best step to take is to objectively reach for what works best.  In that respect, for you longtime fans of the duo in Betweenzone, you’ll probably be really pleased to find out that a song like “May Queen” could have seamlessly fit into the lineup of their album Full Artificial Intelligence, and none of us would have batted an eye about its inclusion.  I’d be the first to tell you that Betweenzone has certainly found many ways to continually impress us in a variety of ways over the years that followed the release of that record, which dates back nearly five years ago now – but by the same token, I feel like their most addictive vibes and songs could arguably appear in the lineup of that very album.  So heck yeah – two steps forward, one step back…whatever you wanna call it – was I happy to discover a song in “May Queen” that reminded me of the album I love most from Betweenzone?  Of course I was!  How could I not be?  “May Queen” has that vibrant energy to it and the inspired spark I love to hear most in this duo’s music; I really think they’ve got themselves a single-worthy song here.

Where I feel like Betweenzone is excelling the most on this tune, is within the balance it possesses.  On my first couple spins through it, I felt like the music instantly stood out for all the right reasons – and truthfully, I felt like that was going to be more than enough to secure a favorable opinion from me.  As I continued to listen to “May Queen,” I came around to appreciate what Dave’s vocals brought to this song as well – but the reality is, they’ve got more than enough hooks from the music to the microphone to make an impact on ya.  That’s the kind of problem you wanna have, am I right?  You wanna make it nearly impossible for listeners to feel like they love any one ingredient more than the others, just like any chef would want you to appreciate the entire meal they made as a whole, not just one single bite.

Appropriately released this month, from what I can see, this is the first song of 2024 for Betweenzone so far, which almost feels long overdue for a band as creative and compelling as they are.  Looking over the list of what they’ve put out there though, they have some years where they’ll drop a few tunes, others where they’ll release a full record or an EP, but you’ll rarely find them inactive ever…they’re actually quite consistent when it comes to how they put their music out there.  The real bottom line is, quality takes time, and it’s tracks like “May Queen” that speak strongly on behalf of how Betweenzone always makes music worth waiting for, no matter how long they’ve kept you or how long it’s been since their last release.  I’m always stoked to hear the bands and artists I love continuing to thrive over the years, and in listening to “May Queen” it’s crystal clear that Betweenzone still has the magic and the inspired spark we all wanna hear from them.

Nothing but green lights from me when it comes to this new single of theirs – “May Queen” is stellar!  It’s a well-balanced tune from start to finish that is a perfect example of the quality in their writing, ideas, and production, all executed flawlessly to the high standards we’ve come to know and love from this band.  “May Queen” is another fantastic cut to add to their catalog that is sure to be a hit with their existing fans, and more than likely to bring a whole lot of new listeners to their music this year as well.

Find out more about Betweenzone from their official page at Instagram here:  https://www.instagram.com/betweenzone

DO NOT READ THIS MESSAGE unless you want to know how you could be the next up on our pages at sleepingbagstudios by clicking here!