Emerging alternative artist Wormogenic is continuing to flesh out the world of her forthcoming Bandaids EP with ‘Apocalypse Queen’, a grunge-tinged, synth-laced alternative-pop track that turns the collapse of a childhood friendship into something suitably cataclysmic.
Following debut single ‘Rip Off The Bandaid’, which introduced Wormogenic’s candid, emotionally exposed approach to alternative-pop, ‘Apocalypse Queen’ pushes further into the tensions at the heart of her songwriting. from its acoustic opening, the track flourisheds through grunge tinged guitars, shimmering synth textures and infectious melodies that give the track a pop immediacy, while the emotional core remains strikingly raw. As comparable to Olivia Rodrigo as it is to the poppier Paramore, the track is great example of Wormogenic’s potential.
At the centre of the song is the experience of losing a friendship that once felt permanent. Rather than approaching that loss with adult cynicism or retrospective distance, Wormogenic returns to the perspective of the child who originally experienced it.
The earliest version of ‘Apocalypse Queen’ was written during her late middle-school years, and the artist made a deliberate decision not to rewrite its lyrics through a more mature lens. Instead, she has retained their youthful innocence, allowing the emotional directness of that original perspective to shape the finished track.
“There’s definitely something cathartic about describing a complex situation in the way a child would,” she explains.
It is a deceptively simple approach, but one that gives the song much of its impact. For a child or teenager, the end of a close friendship can feel enormous, not simply painful, but world-ending. ‘Apocalypse Queen’ embraces that feeling rather than trying to rationalise it, turning adolescent heartbreak into something epic without losing the intimacy of the experience and giving a striking example of what to expect on the upcoming EP Bandaids.
“The song is very sincere and apocalyptic because, in a lot of ways, that’s how it feels to lose a friend,” says Wormogenic. “Female friendships are an integral part of girlhood, and that’s one of the EP’s main themes.”
Listen below:
