# Alt Rock Artist DEVON THOMPSON Dances The Tightrope Between Beauty & Violence With Upcoming EP: SKIN

- Link: https://www.nyrdcast.com/alt-rock-artist-devon-thompson-dances-the-tightrope-between-beauty-violence-with-upcoming-ep-skin/
- Published: 2024-03-13T14:30:00-05:00
- Author: Eugene Tierney

“Devon Thompson’s inevitability belongs in an enclosed room where you cannot tell
what time it is. Her haze is far too cumbrous to have to consider the weight of 
the sun. Her place on stage poses a priority on you, to identify your one. As I 
had listened to Thompson’s performance my mind often drifted. Not because it was
dull at all, but because good music makes it not about the music.” – **LA Times**

“Her recordings are thus far lingering with the Bel Canto of Roy Orbison, the delicacy
of Harriett Wheeler and the sheer aggression of PJ Harvey. Devon has trimmed her
ensemble to the bare essentials for maximum impact.” – **American Pancake**

“A unique blend of dark wave allure and atmospheric vocals, ensuring an unforgettable
experience that transcends musical boundaries.” – **Top Shelf Music**

“Her sultry ululations engulf, making it easy enough to find the poetry in a killing
rage. ” –** Beats Per Minute**

#### **_“_Skin_ highlights the visceral and ethereal, the duality of emotions. The EP in its entirety is like a bipolar rollercoaster of emotions.” _**⏎ **_– Devon Thompson_**

### **DEVON THOMPSON**⏎ _**Dances The Tightrope Between Beauty and Violence With Upcoming EP**__**SKIN**__**Out MARCH 29**_**EP release show at Gibson Showroom in Los Angeles on March 28**

**MARCH 13, 2024 (Los Angeles, CA) —** Thematically balancing beauty and violence,
L.A.-based alt-rocker **DEVON THOMPSON**’s upcoming EP _**Skin**_ (out on **March
29, 2024 **_via_ **Exquisite Feline**) keeps both in check, finding equity in pleasure
and pain. “Skin is delicate, yet so tough,” she explains, examining the title of
her EP. “You can prick parts of our bodies with a needle and not feel much pain.
But others, you’ll bleed instantly.” Exploring the darker reaches of alt-rock with
her pristine sense of melody in check, Thompson pulls together a fascinating pastiche
of post-punk and gothic tendencies and matches it with a nimble knowledge of rhythm
and melody, drawing a capable comparison to the resilient tenderness of flesh.

“Skin has always been fascinating to me,” she explains. “This year I have been abusing
mine with all the guitar playing and my tattoos, so it only felt fair to dedicate
some of the most painful songs to it. The skin on my fingertips would basically 
either shrivel up and fall off or would be rubbed raw from all the steel string 
contact.”

The Gibson Guitars-represented artist continues, “_Skin_ is my second EP. It highlights
the visceral and ethereal, the duality of emotions.” She continues, “The EP in its
entirety is like a bipolar rollercoaster of emotions… ‘**Straitjacket**’ is the 
fun, psychotic song. It’s the first sign of ‘having a breakdown,’ so to speak… It’s
almost feral, animalistic… I think it’s great to open the EP with because it really
sets the tone. It’s not all pretty, not all peaceful. That’s why it’s perfect, because
I am already showing my flaws to the world… the open exposed wound that is my art.”

“‘**I Love You But It Hurts Like Hell**’ is my angry-femme, bitch song, where I 
am just over it all. It’s also my realization that I don’t need to let someone ruin
my life anymore.” Next on the EP, “‘**So Close**’ sounds hauntingly devious… ‘cause
it is,” the dark, fierce, and zealous artist laughs. “It’s when I enter my villain
era, and I’m out for revenge on those who have wronged me. I know you’re not supposed
to want revenge, and take the high road, but not me… Not this time…” 

Devon Thompson- I Love You But It Hurts Like Hell (Official Music Video)

[⌊Devon Thompson- I Love You But It Hurts Like Hell (Official Music Video)⌉⌊Devon
Thompson- I Love You But It Hurts Like Hell (Official Music Video)⌉
Watch this video
on YouTube

**Devon Thompson – “I Love You But It Hurts Like Hell” Music Video**

“‘**Poison Me**’ sounds saccharine-laced, but has a very twisted meaning,” Devon
says. The most recent of her singles, the lovely but serpentine track is “a play
on the classic _Snow White_ tale… I modified the story so that Snow White actually
WANTS to bite that apple. All she wants is eternal peace, a dreamless slumber with
no concept of time. There, she will be happy,” she conveys. “‘Poison Me’ is about
being addicted to the toxicity that love can bring you. ‘Inject it in my veins’ 
kinda shit. So it’s basically a plea, begging that person to feed into my delusions.”

Finally, “‘**She’s The Devil**’ is an acoustic song, but it’s sassy. This is a telling
of someone I knew who ruined someone else’s life. I am now not thinking of myself
anymore- I’ve found my peace. I am able to transcend into the next phase of myself,
whatever that may be… It’s a growing, a maturity, where I am no longer fixated on
the beauty and pain of myself. Now, the torture and passion is passed onto the next
poor soul.”

Most of _Skin_ was recorded in Nashville and Los Angeles with Devon working with
a few different co-writers. “This EP is a showcase of my personality as a whole,”
she explains. “I have my soft, lovely, angelic side. But the rest of me is very 
dark, pessimistic, even hedonistic. I’m extremely proud to put out something so 
symbolic of who I am as a person, and as an artist. A big theme of this EP and collection
of songs is ‘Fairytales vs. Nightmares,’ fever dream-like visions I have.”

While Devon enjoys darker imagery, lyrics, and sounds, there is an unmistakably 
mature levity in her voice and sensibility that belies her youth, as she gravitates
towards the gothic while still footed in the mirth.

[[

_Skin_** **Cover Art

**DEVON THOMPSON’s **_**Skin**_
Track list:

 1. Straitjacket
 2. [I Love You But It Hurts Like Hell](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=933e41cea3&e=615f2b8493)
 3. [So](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=0dd66e86b1&e=615f2b8493)
    [ Close](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=ae27b26136&e=615f2b8493)
 4. Poison Me
 5. She’s The Devil

Embracing an “outsider” point of view is something intrinsic not only to Devon’s
songwriting but to her being as well. Bullied and criticized for being artistic,
her upbringing in Los Angeles wasn’t exactly idyllic. A lone wolf of sorts, the 
oppression she received from the popular kids only empowered her to focus on her
creativity, blossoming into the critically-hailed artist that she is today.

Called “**sonically impressive and lyrically bold**” (Altitude), “**bare bones rock
with alternative post punk and indie flavors throughout**”, and compared to “**PJ
Harvey, Sarah Bettens, Johnette Napolitano**” (American Pancake), Devon channeled
the angst and transformed it into the fiery rockers and intense slow burns that 
have defined her career so far. “When I struggle mentally, I use my writing for 
good and create stories where I can more positively influence myself,” she says 
about her mining of past trauma. “Even if the concept is dark, it helps me so much
to write about it, and write about it from someone else’s perspective.”

With more music and live performances planned for 2024, Devon is gearing up for 
a busy and fast-paced year. Her partnership with producer [James Salter](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=c57cfe2b54&e=615f2b8493)(
_The Raveonettes, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club_) which has already spawned a previous
single released in late 2023 (the intense slow burn “[So Close](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=85f74df4fa&e=615f2b8493)”
with its serial-killer/zombie-inspired video) promises even more singles ahead.

“We were just going to do six songs together and part ways, but we had something
going,” she explains. Bonding over a shared love for the 4AD shoegaze band Lush,
Devon and Salters continued to collaborate which resulted in a wealth of new music
to be released this year. Devon also has the following shows coming up in Los Angeles:

 * March 28  – EP release show at **Gibson Showroom** in Los Angeles
 * April 18 – JT Presents at **The Venice West **in Los Angeles
 * April 28 – Feminine Energy at **The Bourbon Room **in Los Angeles

**Devon Thompson**’s _Skin_ will be released on** March 29, 2024 **_via_** Exquisite
Feline.**

**Social Media:**
[Website](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=ce5d76a9fd&e=615f2b8493)
| [Facebook](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=82e3d9987b&e=615f2b8493)
| [Instagram](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=dec56a2ed4&e=615f2b8493)
| [Spotify](https://reybee.us13.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f67b4587af2b2ef9aa80ed984&id=c1911c8ab1&e=615f2b8493)

[⌊Reybee Inc⌉⌊Reybee Inc⌉[

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