Single reviewsThe Other Side Reviews

Cursive Youth – CAR CRASH (2025)

Quickly stamping their name on the UK indie music scene, Welsh duo Cursive Youth are among the most exciting emerging acts over the past few months. With a growing reputation for electrifying performances, engaging melodies, and an enchanting aura, their fanbase is growing steadily with each listener lost in Cursive Youth’s hypnotic style. We were lucky enough to come across the pair last year with their debut single ‘I’m Gonna Pretend That I’m Not Sad You’re Leaving’ and kept our ears to the ground. Last Friday, Cursive Youth released their sophomore single ‘CAR CRASH’; join us as we delve headfirst into the track.

Following the well-received ‘I’m Gonna Pretend That I’m Not Sad You’re Leaving’, the UK-based duo shift from an alternative pop meets indie-pop tone to something darker, deeper and heavier. Breathing life into nostalgic grunge with hits of alternative rock, so listening to ‘CAR CRASH’ is a flash of the 90s; however, within the kaleidoscopic sonic spiral, a hint of contemporary indie-rock peeps from beneath.

In their debut single, Cursive Youth introduced us to an alternative pop band with rock undertones – all light and bright, but with a bit of a dark side. With ‘CAR CRASH’, they bring their weightier, darker, grittier side to the fore. Soaring guitars swirl with pounding drums tossing you from pillar to post, each moment a slap in the face from a grimy music monster. Yet, as the melody rushes from one side to the other, an odd sense of soothing quivers in the tumultuous tune.

Melodically, ‘CAR CRASH’ is the final shot of vodka that tips you over the threshold at the end of a night out, and it keeps the rush coming with the poignant lyrics. Delving into the turbulence of a volatile relationship, the words meld with sound capturing the “paradoxical nature of a bond that is both destructive and exhilarating…”


Find out more about Cursive Youth on their X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.


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