Jackie Hayes is a Waukegan-raised, Chicago-based musician detangling the tremors of her life to articulate the perils of young adulthood. Her first musical experiences happened in the church worship band, where her piano skills were hailed as a gift from God. There’s an irony to the divinity, considering Hayes was kicked out of the worship band for being a nonbeliever. Rejecting doctrine and dogma, Hayes detoured onto her own musical journey in near-secrecy with fierce opposition from her parents. She spent her adolescence sneaking into shows, working service and retail jobs to fund her own career. Her self-published music gained her a following for the inviting nature of her vulnerable candor.
Finally detaching herself from her family’s religious fervor, Hayes moved to Chicago at 19, immersing herself in the city’s new wave of genreless artistry. The move proved fruitful: she continued self-releasing under the Hayes name to growing acclaim, and shared stages with the likes of Claud, Role Model, and The Japanese House. After collaborating with celebrated producer Billy Lemos, the pair worked on Hayes’ debut EP take it, leave it. Now, they join forces once more for a new chapter in parsing through darkness: There’s Always Going to Be Something.
Where her prior work documented the trials of life’s mundanity, There’s Always Going to Be Something finds Hayes fearlessly reexamining the almighty to unravel her chaotic upbringing. Crafted in quarantine times, these five records are brief transmissions from a burgeoning musician, working to navigate the world while holding the deep desire to escape the confines of consumption. Reunited with Lemos on production, the EP casts a brighter light onto the depths of Hayes’ discontent. Her voice and the music carry a spirited poise, both equally electric and liable to go haywire. The duo excels in crafting alternative music that knows where it belongs: loud, short, and furious.
Hayes transports us through the minutiae of her memories: pretty, plain, and painful. She dwells in them all, just long enough to remember and persist onward. The music teems with the palpable frustration of twentysomething malaise, rendering Hayes as a conduit for her peers’ lost innocence. She’s passionate and exhausted, lamenting the unfettered determination of her younger selves while picking the locks on the woman she must become. When yesterday loses the rose-tinted lens, Hayes dares to file through the remnants for whichever truth works for her.
When self-destruction’s no longer on the menu, mapping tomorrow becomes the only option. There’s Always Going to Be Something symbolizes Jackie Hayes’ next big steps toward that tomorrow. It’s a confirmation of what makes Hayes is one of the most energizing new figures in music. full of unflinching honesty and immovable heart. As chaos rages on, and the years weigh heavier on the psyche, these are raucous musings of choosing bravery, finding Hayes clawing relief from the jaws of her past.
