Boy Scouts get lovelorn and nostalgic on the earthy “Wish”

Taylor Vick says that Free Company, her recent album as Boy Scouts and her debut for ANTI-, is about "good old classic heartbreak," which is about as honest a statement as I've heard from a singer-songwriter this year. Free Company, released at the back end of last year, is a slow-moving and earthy record, on which Vick sings her sadness through smart melodies that take subtle and unexpected turns. And, perhaps because of her straightforward modesty about the subject matter, it's a more fully realized account of a lovelorn state than a lot of artists can muster.

On "Wish," premiering above, her first single since the album's release, Vick stays in that vein, getting nostalgic and focusing on little details that might have been forgotten if it weren't for the shock of a sudden separation. "Sittin quiet, writing lists / Of old times, what you miss / In the dark a stolen kiss / Or the sprinklers gentle mist," she sings with a sultry dejection, drained of much of her energy. In an email to The FADER, Vick wrote that the song "is an ode to reflecting on the past — sorting through waves of nostalgia, and hoping for a future in which reflecting on aspects of the past can feel good, and what a privilege that is."

Listen to "Wish" at the top of the page and find Boy Scouts' upcoming tour dates below.

March 14 - Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon w/ Shannon Lay
March 15 - Orange, CA @ Chapman University
March 18- March 20 - South By Southwest
March 21 - Dallas, TX @ Not So Fun Wknd
March 25-29 - Treefort Music Festival
May 3 - Glasgow, UK @ Stag & Dagger
May 15 - Brighton, UK @ The Great Escape
June 11 – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern *
June 13 – Portland, OR @ Bunk Bar *
June 15 – Oakland, CA @ Crystal Cavern *
June 17 – Los Angeles, CA @ El Cid *
June 18 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar *
June 19 – Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar *
June 20 – Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress *
July 18 - Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Music Fest

Thumbnail image: Ulysses Ortega.