Sophie Swanson – FML

FML, the first release from New Jersey goth pop princess Sophie Swanson since her 2024 mini-album is packed with ’90s Riot Grrrl guitar and emo-tinged attitude.

Artist: Sophie Swanson
Track: FML
Label: self released
Released: 31 October 2025
Find it: YouTube

The first single following on from Sophie Swanson‘s 2024 debut mini album Social Burnout really ought to be titled FFML. Yes, the song title refers to the popular Gen-Z 3-letter acronym for the phrase synonymous with having a bad day, but musically the track itself is a cathartic antithesis to the vibe that comes with a day filled with things going south.

Opening with a deceptively melancholy tremolo’d guitar arpeggio, there’s a momentary pause before a wall of hooky distorted guitar rips your head off, underpinned by thundering drums, while Swanson’s bitter-sweet vocal narrative expounds a catalogue of unfortunate events from her life that we can all relate to. But far from being an emo self-pity party, the tune’s a middle-finger-raising indie rock banger.

Swanson wears what I’m guessing are her childhood female musical role models on her sleeve here – if you love the likes of The Breeders, Veruca Salt or Sleater-Kinney then Sophie’s music is for you. If there’s any justice in this world, college rock radio DJs will stumble across her perfectly crafted three-minute ear worms and play the shit out of all of them.

While she doesn’t really break the mould, it doesn’t matter – her songs do exactly what they need to – they’re memorable, catchy, raucous but relatable anthems for women who give zero fucks that they’ve slept in last night’s eyeliner.

FML by Sophie Swanson is out digitally now.

Find Sophie Swanson:  Instagram

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