On the surface, “Always” is a pained tale of loss and rejection. Songs of Llore, aka Amanda Collins, sings “You said you loved me / Wanted to be by my side / But you lied” over top of lush, contemplative, ethereal arrangements. It’s a painful and familiar feeling expressed with quiet grace and a little defeat… but then there’s an absolutely triumphant turn. “Always” unfurls into a shoegaze influenced declaration of power:
I don’t need a man
To tell me who the fuck i am.
I am always gonna be me
And I don’t care if you don’t see.
The track is taken from a forthcoming Fall 2023 release entitled Late Bloomer that we can only hope contains more impressively self-empowered mantras.