Toronto's Bria Salmena has been a staple in the local scene and beyond for the better part of the last decade, originally rising to prominence as the frontwoman of post-punk band FRIGS before becoming part of Orville Peck's touring band and further exploring country music with longtime collaborator/producer Duncan Hay Jennings under the mononym Bria.
Following her and Jennings's departure from Peck's crew, Salmena has announced her signing to Royal Mountain Records (in addition to her preexisting relationship with Sub Pop, through which Bria released Cuntry Covers Vol. 1 and Vol. 2) and released her first single under her full name, "Bending Over Backwards."
"I come from a punk background, and then I explored my affection for country music," Salmena explained in a statement. "I feel like those two worlds are combining, and I'm finding my own sound within that."
Co-produced by Jennings and Meg Remy of U.S. Girls, "Bending Over Backwards" was mixed by Graham Walsh and Steve Chahley, and mastered by Heba Kadry. The track features additional instrumentation from Evan Cartwright (Cola), Lucas Savatti (FRIGS), Jaime McCuaig and Andy Manktelow.
"It's about some crazy life experiences that I've had in the past four years and the work that it takes to go into chaos and come out of it," Salmena added of the cold wave-indebted single, describing the song as "a manic conversation with myself."
Check out the Talvi Faustmann-directed video for "Bending Over Backwards" below.