L.A.-based singer-songwriter Ryan Pollie has been quietly releasing music under the moniker Los Angeles Police Department since the debut of his self-titled LP in 2014. For a tender new number called "Hard," Pollie linked with Foxygen's Jonathan Rado for some production assistance. The song offers some low-key, lackadaisical comfort for anyone feeling anxious about the pitfalls of love—just in time for Valentine's Day, a holiday that's come to be enshrouded in cynicism. It's hard to be in love, he sings. It's reminder that while being single can be lonely, having something to lose can be even scarier.
"I remember writing this song outside in back of my house drinking Samuel Adams on a pretty day," Pollie told The FADER in an email. "Things were getting more serious with my girlfriend, so naturally with all the good feelings came being terrified of our future, all the possible complications that could arise, and ruin everything. Sometimes it's hard to enjoy the good parts of life without thinking about how they could eventually turn bad," he wrote. "I think getting out negative thoughts in my music helps me work things out and be more positive in general if that makes sense."