Quinnie’s newest single “itch” scratches just the right spot
By Minna-Abdel Gawad
Quinnie (she/her) was first introduced to the public this summer when she shared her song “touch tank” via Tik Tok, where it garnered more than 1 million views on the platform. It was the perfect upbeat love song full of copious amounts of metaphors. Some fab favorites were “It's such a short drive to get to the touch tank/ To you, deep sea pearl, my soft manta ray/ Tender two fingers to touch the display/ I used to dive deep 'til I got splashed in the face.”
Since then, quinnie has released “man” which was the perfect “fuck you” anthem where she powerfully sings, “So fuck all your gold stars/ The cherries in the backyard/ No amount of sugar could sweeten such a bitter heart.” “itch,” released on November 4th, tells another aspect of a relationship: soul crushing yearning.
“Itch” is a beautiful blend of acoustic, grounded sounds and transporting, magical synths. The track may have all the typical elements of a quinnie song, like her whiney higher range vocals and dreamy synthesizers, but it has completely new elements, such as a larger emphasis on classic instruments like acoustic guitar and violins.
The single tells the earnest story of quinnie yearning for someone— being with that person is the only itch she will ever scratch again. The lyric “What if I never scratched another/ Itch for the rest of my life?/ Would I die satisfied/ Knowing it could always get better than this?” perfectly encapsulates this concept. The singer's candid lyrics and urging tone conveys the message perfectly and leaves the listener really contemplating, “would I die satisfied?”
As per usual, quinnie’s lyricism is pleading and honest. A stand-out line of the track is during the pre-chorus when she sings “Although I'm oversaturated/ Know I'm earnest too/ And I know, I'm eager but I swear I'm always true.” There’s something so tender and endearing about these lyrics that makes you feel the urgency of her statements but the deepest truth of them all at once.
What sets this release apart from the rest of her discography is the song’s bridge. The music builds up until this point, when all instrumentation other than the acoustic guitar is stripped, leaving quinnie’s breathy vocals isolated and clear as she sings the chorus once more. The vocals then cease, leaving the beautiful string accompaniment to shine. A singular note is played in the piano as the strings ebb and flow together, transporting listeners to a dream-like state before the beat kicks in again and the song resumes as it once was.
“Itch” is proving to be a phenomenal addition to quinnie’s growing discography, showing newer listeners that she is capable of more than the viral sensation that was “touch tank.” I look forward to the aspect of love and intimacy that quinnie will tackle next.