SOFTCULT DROP NEW SONG
Copyright: Kaylene Widdoes
Following a triumphant UK headline tour, Ontario-based modern grunge sibling duo Softcult return today with their new single ‘Queen Of Nothing’, taken from their forthcoming debut full-length album When A Flower Doesn’t Grow, due 30 January 2026 via Easy Life Records.
With ‘Queen Of Nothing’, Softcult offer one of their most pointed artistic statements yet, weaving their trademark fusion of grunge, shoegaze, and alt-rock while expanding the emotional and thematic reach of their debut album. The track tackles the overwhelming societal pressures placed on women, exposing how these expectations take shape on both individual and structural levels.
Speaking about the new single, vocalist Mercedes Arn-Horn explains, “This song is about the double standards, harsh judgements, and unrealistic expectations that patriarchal society places on women. We’re expected to be sexy, but only as it applies to the male fantasy; somehow a virgin and a slut. We’re expected to constantly nurture the men in our lives, and shamed if our aspirations exceed becoming wives and mothers. The world demands maturity from us, but discards us when we’re old and “unfuckable”, our value reduced to our ability to attract men. And when we attract men, we’re labeled “whores”. We’re expected to be “cool” and “like one of the guys”, but not too abrasive, loud, or “unladylike.” Our intelligence and our success is tolerated so long as it isn’t too threatening or intimidating to our male counterparts. From unconscious biases to blatant sexism, misogyny and gender violence, women face an impossible amount of discrimination in the world today. And no matter the amount of vitriol or ignorance we endure, we’re still expected to smile.”
Mercedes continues, “This song is about the realization that these cycles of abuse are bigger than our personal experiences. It’s recognizing the systemic nature of mistreatment and discrimination.”
On their powerful debut album When A Flower Doesn’t Grow, Softcult - the Ontario-based sibling duo of Mercedes and Phoenix Arn-Horn - unveil their most uncompromising and transformative work yet. Written during a period of intense personal upheaval and self-discovery, the album charts a journey through trauma, disillusionment, empowerment, and ultimately, liberation. Its title is drawn from a quote that resonated with Mercedes at a crucial turning point: “When a flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower.” That perspective anchors the record’s ten tracks, which examine cycles of oppression, abuse, and conformity while championing the bravery required to break away from them. “The truth is, nothing can thrive in an environment where it is stifled,” Mercedes reflects. “We can’t flourish in environments that are oppressive. We need the world around us to be an environment that encourages us to grow.”
Musically, Softcult expand their lush fusion of grunge, shoegaze, and alt-rock, balancing fuzz-soaked riffs and ethereal soundscapes with unfiltered, emotionally charged lyricism. The result is both deeply personal and widely resonant, a record for anyone who has felt confined or diminished by their surroundings, and a call to cultivate spaces that allow for growth, connection, and authenticity.
When A Flower Doesn’t Grow follows last year’s acclaimed Heaven EP, which reimagined the concept of the afterlife as a critique of a culture obsessed with distant futures instead of addressing urgent change in the present. The EP earned Softcult the cover of Spotify’s MARROW playlist (with over 4.7 million followers) and propelled them through extensive touring across North America, the UK, Europe, Australia, and Southeast Asia. Along the way, they’ve picked up admirers such as Hayley Williams and Bring Me The Horizon’s Oli Sykes, supported acts like Incubus and MUSE, and received praise from outlets including Stereogum, BrooklynVegan, Paste, Consequence, Alternative Press, Kerrang!, CBC, The Gay Times, and others.
A band born in the studio and committed to building their own world, Softcult embrace a distinctly DIY ethos. Phoenix oversees production, engineering, and artwork, while Mercedes writes, produces, directs, and edits their evocative, deeply personal videos. Together, they publish the monthly zine SCripture and remain closely connected with their community through the Softcult Discord server. Their work, sonic, visual, and communal, stands as a reminder that revolution is ongoing, and that liberation begins when we reshape our environments so that we, and those around us, can truly grow.
Tracklisting:
1) Intro
2) Pill To Swallow
3) Naive
4) 16/25
5) She Said, He Said
6) Hurt Me
7) I Held You Like Glass
8) Queen Of Nothing
9) Tired!
10) Not Sorry
11) When A Flower Doesn’t Grow
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