Mika James wowed me with her joyful single “Nonna’s Trolley” back in March. Now she’s released the follow-up “Strangers in Line,” and I’m every bit as impressed. This track’s a bit bigger, with powerhouse vocals from Mika, but it’s still imbued with the heart that saw her pique my interest the first time around.
“’Strangers In Line’ is about those brief interactions with strangers that make the world feel a little lighter. It’s also importantly about my love of the community within music,” Mika said. “It was written back when I was finishing high school, and my world was made bigger by the friendships I started to make within the music scene. From 16, I was spending most of my weekends playing drums in a band immersed in the punk scene. I had just started to fall in love with the folk world, I was a fan before I knew that was the kind of music I wanted to make. I loved that I could walk 10 minutes down the road on a school night to see a band that I adored. ‘Strangers In Line’ is an ode to the 30-minute beer garden interval between bands where you see all the same people you saw at the gig the night before.”
While “Nonna’s Trolley” sat squarely in a folk-pop space, “Strangers in Line” is a bit harder to categorise. There’s some rock or blues edge to it, a little country twang, and something else I can’t quite put my finger on. I’ve added it to my rock playlist, although I’m not sure that’s the right place for it. Whatever Mika’s created here though, it’s exceptional.
Image used with permission from Riot House Publicity