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We’ve been keen on Sam Short since last year, when this power pop purveyor stomped onto the scene with "Already Mine," establishing her style of big hooks and vital vocals. With her latest EP, Faulty Wiring, Short assembled an all-female team, including co-writer Liza Kaye, and continued that arena's inevitable sound, punching out a collection of gorgeous sultry songs that feel like a real talent elevator. As always, wanting to know more, we asked Short to break down her latest EP, track by track.

ABOUT FAULTY WIRING EP 

“I wrote this project during a time in which I felt I had truly hit rock bottom. I didn’t trust my mind, and I didn’t trust myself. Each song on this EP details my experience with my own toxic tendencies, my obsession with melancholia, and pure disillusionment. The titular track, Faulty Wiring, serves as this project’s completion. By the end of the song, I come to terms with the fact that I will never truly be ‘fixed.’ For better, or for worse, I am just wired differently.”

“MASTERPIECE”

The first single off of the EP, “Masterpiece,” is an ode to duality and disillusionment in love. It depicts my first-ever romantic relationship: one that was equal parts beautiful and toxic. Throughout the song, I unabashedly describe my first love as a “sick, sick freak,” as well as a “mindless flight risk” and a “bad, bad dream,” amongst other things. Despite these negative descriptors, however, in the song’s hook, I ultimately land on referring to this person as a “Masterpiece”—which is a testament to my own delusion. By the end of the song, a harsh reality is revealed: the relationship will always be an endless cycle of poison and cure—and I’m partially to blame.

“Hooked”

The second single off of this project, “Hooked,” was the project’s most successful track, accumulating tens of millions of views across socials and tens of thousands of pre-saves. The song touches on a darker part of my psyche, the part that has an uncanny obsession with “feeling low.” The song’s brooding lyrics are paired with a fun, dancey alt-pop soundscape, making it a perfect summer bop.

“I Wouldn't Love Me”

“I Wouldn’t Love Me” serves as the third single on the project. The track weaves together both “Masterpiece” and “Hooked” in a way in which it touches on both my affinity for darkness and my tendencies in romantic relationships. Being possibly my most vulnerable song on the project, throughout the alt-indie track I confess that I feel like a burden, “Oh I’m broken, I’m a fucking liability…” and that if I were my partner, “I wouldn’t love me.”

“Faulty Wiring”

“Faulty Wiring,” the project’s title track encompasses the themes of each of the other songs while bringing to the table a newfound realization: the idea that I may not ever truly “solve” myself, rather, I will need to come to terms with the fact that I am simply wired differently. Existing in a much more folky/indie soundscape, the song brings a raw vulnerability to the project, introducing a different side of my artistry than I have ever showcased for my fans: one that is defined by adroit lyricism and is heavily influenced by the singer-songwriter genre. 

Sam Short's Faulty Wiring is available now.