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Touchscreen (feat. Meredith Graves)

House of Feelings

2018

Touchscreen (feat. Meredith Graves)

Release Date:  2018

By Pitchfork

Reviewed August 6, 2018

“Touchscreen” is primed for a dance party with our computer overlords

House of Feelings’ “Touchscreen” isn’t the first song to propose the idea that it’s possible to fall in love with a machine—it goes back to Kraftwerk or even “SpongeBob.” In a world of endless sensory input and information available in the palm of a hand, for better or for worse, there is no need to ever feel alone. Computer love is everywhere.

This latest song from the Brooklyn-based dance music group—helmed by Matty Fasano, Joe Fassler, and occasional Pitchfork contributor Dale Eisinger—is a deeply funky house track. It centers around the vocals of Meredith Graves, former frontperson of the punk band Perfect Pussy, and abandons the mosh pit-inducing urgency she’s known for in favor of delivery that’s ecstatic and borderline cheeky. It’s impossible to tell if Graves is being ironic or dead serious when she explores the joys of never being alone in the age of smartphones: ”If you ever feel alone/There’s a light that never goes out/And it’s wonderful,” she swoons, breathlessly. But that’s what’s great about the song; it’s totally up to the listener to decide whether or not it’s worth fear -mongering about technology. When met with House of Feeling’s tenor sax riffs, Nile Rodgers-like guitar line, and a chiptune-style beat, the result is a song that feels groovy and kitschy without overindulging in camp. “Touchscreen” is stuffed to the brim, primed for a dance party with our computer overlords.

8:00 PM · Aug 6, 2018