“Cheap Gold” by Josh Tavares is an indie pop song that lets you relate to the artist and work through the pain of toxic past relationships as he sings with a voice as smooth as honey.
Piano, light amounts of production, and background synths, all build the beat and highlight his vocals. There’s this addicting rhythm to the song, as Tavares’ lyrics roll right off his tongue in a really satisfying way. He details the gaslighting his ex did and explains how the relationship turned sour. His voice conveys all the powerful emotions of betrayal. There’s a few lines of lyrics that stood out to me, but especially: “Had nothing to do so you filled your bed with boys” because it hits you hard and rhymes with the last line in a lovely way.
Tavares’ music video is absolutely perfect for this song. The camera follows him wandering through nature, with a calming, rustic vibe that only elevates his sound further. He leaves us with a comedic note in the video as he continues his trek down the dirt path, and his suitcase pops open, and spills all of his belongings. Wittingly, Tavares captioned the announcement post for this song “Keep your dating apps in your games folder.”
Josh Tavares is a Canadian alt-pop artist based in Toronto. He draws inspiration from the writing style of renowned pop artists including Lorde, Billie Eilish, and Taylor Swift and he combines that with rock influences from The Neighbourhood. He says that he grew up with the love of writing music and often begged teachers for the opportunity to perform in front of the class. I am excited to be part of his ever growing audience.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joshtavares_7
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshtavares_7/
Written by Annika Johnson, edited by Hannah Schneider