Live Review: Introducing Boston's Juniper and their soul and blues inspired new single 'Daydream (brake lights)'

Juniper hails from halfway across the world, but with their grooving, indie pop sound, the Boston-based trio sounds right at home in Australia. Scott Johnson (vocals, bass), Ahren Shreeve (guitar), and Alejandro Marín (drums) formed Juniper after meeting at university. Drawing from a diverse collection of musical genres including alternative rock, folk, R&B, and jazz, the trio spent the quarantined 2020 in rural Maine, USA, writing and recording their debut album to be released in June.

Inspired by the sounds of Still Woozy and John Mayer, “Daydream (brake lights)” is a blues/soul-inspired track that wades through the losing side of a one-night stand. “You’re not in great spirits,” lead singer and bassist Scott Johnson said with a laugh. “Writing about when you’re not successful is important too.” With wistful lyrics like “Cruising through a daydream never saw you putting on your brake lights”, it’s an honest, self-reflective piece on the dangers of getting ahead of yourself. The crisp instrumentation is bolstered by a sharp, funk guitar riff and floating bassline, and adds builds upon more dynamic textures and arrangements from their previous work.

“Daydream (brake lights)” is the second single from their upcoming debut album, set to be independently released June. Their first single, “Angelina” (released in December), has already enjoyed some success in Australia. “We’re listening to a lot of Pond, Spacey Jane, Tame Impala, and Hockey Dad at the moment,” said Scott. “We’d love the chance to come Down Under as a band in the future.”

“Daydream (brake lights)” is out on all platforms now.

Words by Mack Perry

Image: Supplied

LISTEN TO NEW MUSIC HERE

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