Intersecting indie dream pop and a cosmic country sound, Mercury Slim has released one damn fine new single in ‘Space Cadet’. As he sings of avoiding the trappings of societal responsibilities and expectations there’s a lush musical underpinning with pedal steel sparkling and swooning over lazily strummed acoustic guitars and a funk-lite drum kit. It all adds up to a beautiful mix of sounds, especially the chorus which locks into your short term memory like a space cowboy on a interstellar round-up.

“The song is very multi faceted and takes on many roles rather than being about any one thing in particular. I continue to find new meanings as time marches on,” explains Slim. “‘Space Cadet’ is about rejecting everything culture and society hands you as what you are supposed to be. As well as rejection of the consumerism and ideology that drives a lot of what’s harming people and the planet we live on. The chorus/ hook is a release from societal expectations. I became a huge Star Trek (particularly TNG) fan after high school and it has shaped how I view the world and what is possible for humanity in a post scarcity society. On another facet, my father and I began working together right after I got out of high school and he drove the company work van. Once I got into Star Trek, which he was already into, it became something we bonded over and we where able to connect in a positive healthy way really for the first time in our lives. He had been gone for half of my childhood battling addiction and was able to overcome what he needed to come back into my families life. We named his work van the NC-17D and it was kind of our ship to drive around and solve mysteries (doing IT work) in.”

Mercury Slim’s debut album is due later this year, the results of three years in LA which have helped Mercury Slim refine his sound into its current iteration: an uplifting blend of old and new influences that lands somewhere between psychedelic folk and R&B. The self-taught musician draws inspiration from his psycho-spiritual and somewhat chaotic upbringing in the Southwest. Whether singing about love, loss, or disdain for society, his central message is our ability to rise above.