Song You Need: Caroline Polachek announces her new album with a plea to the gods

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If you were even casually following indie pop in 2022, you already know that Caroline Polachek released two of the genre’s best singles this year in “Billions“ and “Sunset,” not to mention the wonderful “Sirens“ created with electro producer Flume — discussed in detail on the 44th episode of The FADER Interview. (There was also her cover of Nancy Sinatra’s “Bang Bang” created for the new Minions movie soundtrack, but that was overshadowed by Yeat’s “Rich Minion.”) Today, Polachek releases her third solo pop song of the year “Welcome to My Island,” along with the announcement of her highly-anticipated sophomore project, Desire, I Want To Turn Into You, out February 14.

Polachek, who so often distills the mythic into her art and music, captures the ambivalence of godlike aspirations in her new song. Co-produced by Polachek with Dan Nigro, Danny L Harle, A. G. Cook and Jim E-Stack, the soaring sunburst of the song’s electronics are an unambiguous dose of Vitamin D, while Polachek’s vocals suggest a complex brew of isolation, ambition, and nostalgia. She robotically intones the song’s title in the verse, implying that we’re trapped in her idyllic world forever, before bellowing the album’s title on the hook. “Desire, I want to turn into you” sounds like a pact with some eternal force, though on her half-rapped bridge, Polachek makes it clear that reaching the pinnacle comes with a cost.