Cuffed Up - French Exit

Cuffed Up are a Los Angeles outfit formed through a chance encounter at Shab Ferdowsi's Sunday Brunch (Blushh) where Sapphire Jewell and Ralph Torrefranca first met, connecting about their love for the UK punk scene with bands like IDLES and Shame. A few months later, Cuffed Up was formed along with Joe Liptock and Vic Ordonez, becoming a real passion project that has turned into a full time band.

French Exit was the first single from the band’s debut self-titled EP and it sets the table for the kind of confessional punk that Cuffed Up brings in spades. The accompanying video for the single, directed by Josh Drew, wonderfully intercuts the track’s isolating feeling with the intimacy that can come when you find that one person who understands.

We all know the feeling of floating through a party, of weaving through the “hellos” and “how are yous” in a desperate attempt to find a nook or cranny in which to squeeze, a place where you can feel comfortable. Much of what works about “French Exit” comes from the way in which vocalist Sapphire Jewel navigates this isolation, pouring out a stream of spoken-word anxiety with ease and bending her voice around the exacting instrumentals in way that effortlessly draws you into the band’s world.

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