Lady Charles reassures you that the Godx has a plan in their lighthearted, dance-heavy new banger — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Synthy and steeped in the ’80s in the best possible way, Godx boasts a bubbly groove and a fierce-but-whimsical bassline. “I wanted to write a song about gender that touches on issues like how colonialism enforced the gender binary and how LGBTQ+ people have historically been excluded from religious life,” Lady Charles said. “I did not, however, want to create something too serious or overt, and instead wanted to create a silly pop song you could dance to that would still feature those themes beneath the surface.”
With the use of the term Godx, Lady Charles imagines a genderless or multi-gendered deity who wears a fabulous bodice of gold and onyx, and has the backs of all people without any trace of the usual judgment:
“Get down, the Godx has a plan
And if you don’t know, you’ll find out in the end
The Godx is with you when you sing this song
So worship by dancing and singing along.”
Godx — like the rest of the Ottawa popsters’ forthcoming album Manic Pixie Dream World — came about as the result of the pandemic. “The beginning of the pandemic was a reckoning for me, unsure of whether I wanted to continue in music,” they said. “It became clear to me however, that I would need to stop trying to fit in with the masculine rock image that was big in Canada and be unapologetically myself — gender-fluid, genre-fluid, and exploring every wild musical and aesthetic tangent that I wanted rather than chasing what I felt others would want.”
A big part of this reckoning came about when Lady Charles posted their song Manic Pixie Dream Boy on a channel dedicated to ’90s band Of Montreal, and frontperson Kevin Barnes responded with enthusiasm. “My idols didn’t hold back, and neither do I now,” Lady Charles said, “and Godx is partly a celebration of that new freedom.”
Lady Charles was even able to recruit producer/engineer/mixer Erin Tonkon — who worked on David Bowie’s Blackstar — for the project. “Erin told me her musical point of reference for the mix was ‘Of Montreal covering Prince’s Let’s Go Crazy,’ ” Lady Charles said. “Her mix made the song come alive, making the ’80’s musical references become explicit and sound authentic.”
The non-binary indie-rock shapeshifter released their self-titled debut EP in 2020, blending elements of folk, indie rock, and electronica with themes of gender, apocalypse, and loss. Manic Pixie Dream Boy brought their sound and image to a wider audience, racking up thousands of listens and views and setting the stage for a string of unique singles including the cyberpunk prog freakout Apocalypse Girls and the kaleidoscopic, pandemic-era love song Noella. Buoyed by a vibrant aesthetic, Lady Charles’ blend of art rock sensibilities, glam visuals, and punk rock abandon chart a new course into musical parts unknown.
Check out Godx above, sample more music from Lady Charles below, and follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
