{"title":"Little Scream","description":"\u003cp\u003eMontreal-based songwriter and guitarist Laurel Sprengelmeyer has been playing music under the moniker \u003cstrong\u003eLittle Scream\u003c\/strong\u003e since 2008. In 2011, she released \u003ci\u003eThe Golden Record\u003c\/i\u003e, which Pitchfork dubbed “a stellar debut” and NPR called “an absolutely captivating record.” Her second album and Merge debut \u003ci\u003eCult Following\u003c\/i\u003e, which features guests including Sufjan Stevens, Mary Margaret O’Hara, and Sharon Van Etten, earned Little Scream new band of the week status from The Guardian and received five stars from Bust Magazine. Since the release of \u003ci\u003eCult Following\u003c\/i\u003e, Little Scream has stayed busy as a member of Richard Reed Parry’s \u003ci\u003eQuiet River of Dust \u003c\/i\u003eamong other collaborations. Her third album, \u003ci\u003eSpeed Queen\u003c\/i\u003e offers us a reflection on class and poverty in America. \u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"little-scream-cult-following","title":"Little Scream - Cult Following","description":"\u003cp\u003eLaurel Sprengelmeyer, a.k.a. \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/little-scream\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLittle Scream\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e, says she began conceiving of \u003ci\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCult Following\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e while visiting a friend in a small intentional community in northern Brazil that was on the verge of becoming a cult. “People were running around reading auras, interpreting each other’s dreams, and ‘living on light’ instead of eating—which was as compelling as it was absurd. I became very aware of the entropy of belief. You could feel the magnetism of ideas take shape and pull people into their center like a black hole… a thing so filled with light that its own gravity means that none of it can escape.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThat experience laid the groundwork for \u003ci\u003eCult Following, \u003c\/i\u003ea lush, expansive, retro-leaning gem that straddles intimate fragility with bombastic dancefloor-ready songs. Listening to it is like reading an epic novella: part fairy tale, part ecstasy, and part human folly. Right from the start, you know you’ve entered a universe with its own rules—dazzling, dark, and whimsical, not unlike Willy Wonka’s gated factory. From the candy-filled ballroom of “Love as a Weapon” (which is as accessible as it is emotionally complex), you are invited onto the comforting ship of the warm ballad “Evan,” only to find that “the waves are falling\/they’re falling in faster, and the ship has no master…here comes disaster!” When the shipwreck subsides, you find yourself in the dark depths of\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003ethe song “Wishing Well,” where Mary Margaret O’Hara makes a stunning, subtle vocal appearance. Mary Margaret is one of several guests to appear on this record, along with Sufjan Stevens, Sharon Van Etten, and Kyp Malone. Encountering them is not unlike having cameo stars within a film, but the world they inhabit is entirely Little Scream’s, and her voice acts as a tour guide through lush and sometimes terrifying sonic landscapes carefully constructed with her creative partner, Arcade Fire’s Richard Reed Parry\u003ci\u003e.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eCult Following\u003c\/i\u003e is a record that deserves to be listened to from start to finish, with each song having been constructed to meld seamlessly into the next. There may be those who listen only to the record’s obvious catchy hit, but they would be missing out on the depth of stunners like “Wishing Well” and “Someone Will Notice.” Like a classic novella, you must pass through all of the record’s stages to fully experience a triumphant hero’s journey.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLP includes a coupon for a full download.\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":52739206218039,"sku":"MRG537LP","price":19.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52739206250807,"sku":"MRG537CD","price":13.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Download","offer_id":52739206185271,"sku":"MRG537digital","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/504a9f79efa1c297c6c7129f085a3a787f669a8a_460ab1c14d52757d8a3bc79a3a20fae288970ba7_medium_jpg.jpg?v=1785381134"},{"product_id":"little-scream-speed-queen","title":"Little Scream - Speed Queen","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn her third album, \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/little-scream\"\u003eLittle Scream\u003c\/a\u003e offers us a reflection on class and poverty in America. \u003ci\u003eSpeed Queen\u003c\/i\u003e began as bits of prose written while touring \u003ca href=\"\/products\/little-scream-cult-following\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eCult Following\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e across North America—observing the slow entropy of the US, ruminating on her own low-income upbringing in a flyover state, and, as she says, “taking it all in from the privileged position of being a new Canadian.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe title, which alludes to the opioid crisis, actually refers to a washing machine. Little Scream says, “When you’re struggling, nothing says you’ve made it more than getting your own washing machine. \u003ci\u003eSpeed Queen\u003c\/i\u003e is about the dream of making it, and feeling desperately close but missing it.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"Peak Vinyl","offer_id":52739226403127,"sku":"MRG637lp-C1","price":22.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52739226435895,"sku":"MRG637CD","price":14.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Download","offer_id":52739226370359,"sku":"MRG637digital","price":7.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/10ef27ba9a0411ef81e380a502ae0bf312e54709_3f0602eff65004c15a006dc1c69b72e076585227_medium_jpg.jpg?v=1785381538"}],"url":"https:\/\/mergerecords.com\/collections\/little-scream.oembed","provider":"Merge Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}