Empty Pinata is back, and they've brought matches with their second single, "Bonfire." Empty Pinata exchanges heartbreak for heat and indulges in an indie-pop gem that evokes emotion. Co-produced by Gamal and Bloom, this one is a full-blown ceremonial burning away of one's former life. You're invited to take a seat and warm your hands by the flames.
"Bonfire" envelopes you in a gentle glow. The production is small-scale but never claustrophobic, a combination of lo-fi guitar textures and polished electronic pulses that swell and retreat like sparks on the wind. It's bedroom pop that can stand up straight, soft rock that means something, and an emotionally textured soundscape that's both intensely personal and instantly relatable.
What makes the track shine, however, is the vocal performance. Pinata's voice glides into that sweet spot between the spoken word's intimacy and the melody's fragility. It reads like a crosstown late-night telephone call to a friend or perhaps an ex after the truth has finally boiled out of you by accident.
While the flames of heartbreak lie at the song's heart, "Bonfire" does not wallow. There's release in the rhythm, healing in the harmonies. It's a song that feels the sting of romantic collapse but doesn't let that dictate the mood. It burns, sure, and it also glows.
With "Bonfire," Empty Pinata shows that in therapy-as-art, sometimes the only way to move on is to light a match and burn the past into pretty, melodic smoke.