People today are presented with more and more reasons to cry. Images of war, gore, and grief appear on our screens. Anger lights up the streets in a sinister blaze. When loved ones leave us, less and less of them reappear in their place, as we become more distant from each other than people have ever been before. As a result of our atomization, we feel powerless, spectators of a psychological horror so intense as to rot the viewer’s brain from the inside out. But, what if I don’t want to cry?
When the status quo sustains itself off of fear, violence, and misery, nothing upsets the world order more than a marginalized community coming together to smile and dance. Enter Free.99, a hardcore electronic duo who makes delightfully fun “trans riot music” for “sad people.” Bouncy bass, distorted low-mid synths, and rapid tempos unite to make a grittier, more energetic version of 2010s club bangers on the duo’s new EP. Memorable vocal hooks and guitar leads bring this project back down to earth, as Free.99 prove themselves ready to be plugged into the PA at any party worth going to. In other words, this music sounds anything but sad.
By inviting the listener into a trans riot, the duo sets up an expectation of blatantly political music with an angry, depressive, and self-serious edge, but none of these words even remotely describe the sound of TRAUMA REDUCTION PRAYER. Instead, the listener enters this trans riot only to find themselves in a lively dance party, full of people enjoying their night out as if there’s no hostile world out there waiting for its opportunity to break in. Such celebration slaps bigotry in the face, revealing the humanity of a tokenized and marginalized community full of people who want to have a fun Friday night with their friends just like everybody else. When someone asks you to cry, nothing gets under their skin more than watching you dance.