“We treated this record like a thesis and really studied what we were writing about,” says Mouzourakis. “Learning about it all was kind of life-changing. The whole point is that [this time in history] is very alienating, but we’re all experiencing it and we can all work together. That is power and that is resistance, and that is inherently hopeful.”
The melancholic slow-burn of ‘Thief’, with its hugely cathartic payoff, took seven years to nail, with its tales of situationships and an existential sense of strife, taking on new meaning in the context of The Precariat. Meanwhile, ‘Angel In The House’ marks one of the album’s most defiant moments: a song that puts Mouzourakis’ sludgy, stoner rock riffs front and centre, whilst lyrically taking inspiration from Virginia Woolf’s speech, “Professions For Women”.
The Precariat ends with its title track: a heartland rock-inspired closer, crafted in the Springsteen tradition of anthems where the American dream is never quite as it was built up to be. “I was missing home so much, but living outside of the US gave me so much perspective and concern.” says Bethel. “We were sonically playing into a sort of bleeding heart patriotism,” notes Mouzourakis. “A lot of US presidents co-opt ‘Born in the USA’, even though its lyrics are in direct contradiction to the systems they represent.”
It’s a big, bold ellipsis of a finale that’s meant to provoke questions and start conversations. And Tommy Lefroy, for their part, want to take The Precariat as far and wide as they can – building on their previous support shows with Sigrid, Samia and Niall Horan, and engaging with audiences by playing live as much as possible. The band hosts book swaps at their headline shows, where fans are encouraged to bring and take a book, in a hope to facilitate conversation and connection. This comes alongside the band’s book club, Some Vague Hope – a Kafka-indebted name that also doubles as the imprint label for their record. ‘Some Vague Hope’ could also stand for the steely yearning that Wynter Bethel and Tessa Mouzourakis put into everything they do as Tommy Lefroy – embedded into The Precariat, it’s a message that, together, there’s still life in us yet.
