Looking back and moving forward with Bexy's upcoming EP You'll Figure It Out Kid

When Kid Harpoon, the writer and producer behind Harry Styles and Miley Cyrus, picks you from a group of more than 500 artists, it could be a sign you're doing something right. More so that you're either incredibly talented or maybe just plain lucky...

Needless to say, my expectations were high coming into writing this review. Bexy is an independent artist originally from Ōtautahi, Christchurch. Now based in London and working on new material, she has amassed more than 16 million streams. Honestly, they can't all be wrong.

Last week she released Seventeen, the first single from her upcoming EP You'll Figure It Out Kid. What else? The writing sessions with Kid Harpoon took place at Abbey Road Studios. The same place The Beatles recorded their album of the same name. Talk about a résumé.

Empty Spaces was granted an advance listen to the entire EP. Here are our thoughts.

The single itself, Seventeen, is super refreshing. It almost reminds me of Avril Lavigne's I'm With You. Cruisy, thought provoking and reflective in nature. Musically it gives a confident nod to early 2000s pop punk tones and rhythms. But then there's a smooth execution both vocally and in the way the parts are played. It's sits with you in a place of feeling, and it'll follow wherever you let your mood take it.

It moves on fast. Love Me Like You Lost Me is a classic stoner punk vibe, not unlike Best Coast or Wavves. The melody has an addictive familiarity that makes it a challenge to shake off. Fat, crunchy, reverb drenched guitars twang and twist around the passion of intimacy. It's one of the more urgent moments on the EP, the kind of song that sneaks back into your head hours later.

Dinner Conversation is something different entirely. A discussion that simmers through time and space. Then, like a marching band arriving, the chorus escalates to send a powerful message: "Don't you forget me." Doing loops in a confusing relationship, the bit crusher textures are like a reflection of blended narratives and the ever elusive truth.

Take Me to the City flows on a similar wavelength, though perhaps with more intention. It drones with shades of early 2010s dream pop while quietly nodding toward trip hop influences. Naturally, the production and songwriting are immaculate. Lyrically, it confronts the idea of losing yourself while falling in love. "Isn't it ironic I didn't dip my toes in." A lingering sadness for something that slipped away before it was fully understood. There are layers of emotional depth that reveal themselves only with repeat listening.

The EP wraps up with Slow Down Child. It's a gentle wind down and a fitting way to finish the release. A think piece of sorts, considering what has come before and looking back with a sense of acceptance.

In its entirety, You'll Figure It Out Kid is a journey through the turbulence of youth, love and the messy process of figuring things out. Bexy captures that which feels enormous when you're living in it, and strangely distant when you look back. It's an imperfect snapshot of growing up, developed with enough honesty for it to matter.

These songs remind me of a period in my own life. Maybe for you they will too.

A release date is yet to be confirmed.