Hit Like A Girl (CREDIT: Fish Outta Water Films)

Montclair, New Jersey's own Hit Like A Girl is following up their 2021's Heart Racer EP with a brand new release, Becoming, and this one boasts a completely different sound. Frontperson Nicolle Maroulis cut their teeth in the Hardcore scene and they were inspired to make an EP in that style after witnessing a particularly great set by The Callous Daoboys at The Fest last year. Maroulis recruited their REFRESH Records labelmates Talor Smith (Biitchseat) and Jimmy Wilkens (Jimmy Lo-Fi, The Sonder Bombs,) as well as Avery Hargrave & Michael Morris, to play on it. Steve Perrino, who's worked with Heart Attack Man, The Sonder Bombs, Biitchseat, etc. produced, mixed, and mastered the Becoming EP. Earlier this week, Hit Like A Girl partnered with BrooklynVegan to share our first taste of the forthcoming EP with "Dismay" and its companion music video. It's a fairly aggressive and scuzzy Metallic Hardcore/Screamo song, but from the sounds of "Dismay," Hit Like A Girl has just as much fun doing this as the more poppier Emo/Indie Punk stylings they were previosuly known for.


Nicolle Maroluis shared with BrooklynVegan: "'Dismay" is, honestly, about the music industry and how jaded it's made me over the years. It's about my "compare and despair" problem, where I look at bands around me and compare my work and progress to theirs and find myself angry at the differences between the statuses of our bands." "I always feel like I work so hard trying to appease The Industry Monster and its Algorithm Minions; i.e. with pumping out music often, making content, being present on social media, touring as much as I can, etc. I'm doing everything I'm "supposed to be doing." It never seems like it's enough," Maroluis continued. They told us here at The Witzard that "Dismay" & Becoming showcase the kind of music they've always wanted to do, buy felt like Indie/Emo was just more "marketable." Although, after years of trying to find a home within those sub-genres and "failing all the time," as they put it, decided if they were going to just fail all the time, it might as well be doing what they ACTUALLY want to do. Hit Like A Girl's Becoming EP drops 11/18 on REFRESH Records. "Dismay" is now available on your preferred streaming service.