LOS ANGELES, CA- There are songs that demand a little time before they reveal themselves, and then there are songs that make their intentions known almost immediately. Good Neighbours’ new single “Mary Jane” falls firmly into the latter category. Within the first listen, I was in.
“Mary Jane” is my introduction to the UK duo of Oli Fox and Scott Verrill, so I can’t personally speak to how dramatically the single departs from what came before it. Good Neighbours themselves describe the song as a step toward a new sound, one that pushes them into something a little rawer and more energetic. If this is the direction they’re heading, consider this newcomer fully on board.
Released August 28 via Polydor Records, “Mary Jane” follows their recent single “Superstar,” and the band considers the two songs somewhat connected. “Superstar” apparently captures the initial rush of falling for someone, while “Mary Jane” takes that attraction into the territory of outright infatuation.
And, come on, are we really supposed to hear the name “Mary Jane” paired with the idea of getting higher than ever before and not wonder about the obvious double entendre?
Maybe Mary Jane is just Mary Jane. But the wordplay certainly seems intentional, particularly because intoxication is essentially the song’s central metaphor. This isn’t really a song about getting high. It’s about meeting someone who has approximately the same effect.
That uncomplicated premise is part of what makes “Mary Jane” work so well. The lyrics aren’t attempting to deliver some grand revelation about love or attraction. Instead, Good Neighbours capture that wonderfully ridiculous state where you’re so attracted to another person that your internal cool factor suddenly drops to zero.
One moment in particular immediately caught my ear. Midway through the song, Fox races through the thought about not knowing where this person goes when she goes out alone and desperately wanting to tag along. On paper, it’s an incredibly simple sentiment. In the recording, however, the rhythmic delivery gives it a nervous, almost stumbling momentum, as though the words are spilling out faster than the narrator can decide whether he should actually be saying them.
It made me laugh… More importantly, it gave the song personality.
That slightly overeager awkwardness turns out to be entirely consistent with the visual world Good Neighbours have constructed around “Mary Jane.” Directed by Harv Pearson, the accompanying video follows an awkward young man attempting to attract a girl at a house party. His inability to comfortably communicate his attraction eventually gives way to an unexpectedly elaborate dance, essentially turning his nervous romantic energy into a mating ritual.
It’s a clever visual extension of what the song already does musically. Attraction isn’t presented as smooth, sophisticated or particularly dignified. It’s exciting, embarrassing and intoxicating all at once.
And “Mary Jane” sounds like it.
The song moves with the kind of buoyant energy that makes its simplicity an asset. Its repeated “undeniable” refrain is designed to stick. Nothing feels particularly interested in restraint. This is big, immediate pop built around the simple pleasure of a hook that wants you participating before you’ve had time to analyze it.
That may also explain why my first reaction to “Mary Jane” was simply that it was undeniably fun.
Sometimes that’s enough.
What’s coming through the speakers is catchy, energetic, charmingly lovesick and just goofy enough to feel human.
Maybe Mary Jane is a girl. Maybe the name is a wink at something “greener”. More likely, Good Neighbours know exactly what they’re doing by allowing both ideas to occupy the same space.
Either way, “Mary Jane” got me high enough on Good Neighbours to want to hear what comes next.
Follow Good Neighbors on Facebook, TikTok, X, and Instagram.
*********************
