Griff - last night’s mascara

Griff just released her new single "last night's mascara". Originally slated to be on her 2024 album "Vertigo", the beloved unfinished demo was finally completed and released recently. Griff has been performing the song while on Sabrina Carpenter's "Short n' Sweet Tour" and due to fan appreciation, it is finally out. It reminds of me of Katy Perry's power pop from her "Teenage Dream" era as well as the 80s throwback vibes of Sky Ferreira.

Its production is very early 2010s EDM pop with a propulsive, driving beat that makes you want to get up and dance. Griff’s voice is clear and quite powerful, convincingly emoting the emotional lyrics about regretting her actions from the night before. The song ends on a triumphant note as the act of wiping away her mascara is a metaphor of forgetting about the past and charting a fresh start.

I really enjoyed the religious references in the lyrics, specifically when she sings “I'm on my knees at the altar, baby” and “Asking God to wash you from my soul” as well as the reference to Sunday, a day often devoted to going to church. From the lyrics, we can deduce that the narrator is regretting her actions from Saturday night, as she soberly wakes up on Sunday morning. Having only discovered Griff while perusing Spotify’s weekly “New Music Friday” playlist, I must say that this new song of hers has definitely peaked my interest in checking out her two albums “One Foot In Front Of The Other” and the aforementioned “Vertigo”. Will Griff break out in 2025 like her tour mate Sabrina Carpenter did this year? With more songs like this, the answer is yes.