The Yum Yum Tree are a longstanding Atlanta garage rock outfit who formed after lead singer Andy Gish moved to the city back in the early 2000s. With a couple of album releases under their belt, the group went on something of a hiatus, pursuing other projects, before reforming in 2019.
Following the reunion, the band went through an extended period playing live and working on new material. They are now back with their first full-length album since 2007’s Paint By Numbers, with the forthcoming Turn Down the Noise. Shine is the first single to be lifted from that record and on it, we get to experience a kind of grungy, female-fronted guitar brand that we got lots of in both the 90s and late 00s.
With this new single, the band marinate in a kind of golden wonderment, reflecting on feelings of connection and introspection. Gish’s vocals have a honeyed beauty to them, but she delivers them with a naked vulnerability that resonates with authenticity. Citing Brené Brown as an inspiration, her work has encouraged Andy to embrace discomfort in her writing.
Shine is about wanting someone you can’t have, yet making peace with that experience and finding yourself wanting the best for them. The performance here finds itself pitched right between a sense of yearning and a kind of acceptance — watching someone across the bar, and just being happy you got to experience them.
Check out Shine below, and look out for Turn Down the Noise, which is set for release on 10 April.