Jax Indie Singer-Songwriter Erica Reese Has “Breakfast for Dinner,” Introspection for Dessert on Dreamy New Single

Jacksonville-based indie singer-songwriter Erica Reese (Coastal Creature) is back with another new track, “Breakfast for Dinner,” the dream-pop sound of a vicious cycle—and, just maybe, an epiphany.

Assisted by producer Patrick Taylor (Trash Panda, Lazuli Vane), Reese crafts a complex instrumental that’s closely attuned to the song’s rugged emotional landscape. Bouncy synth bass and drum machine rub elbows with a gleaming guitar riff as Reese sets a bittersweet scene, murmuring, “Breakfast for dinner at 10 p.m. / Drowning my sorrows at the bar again.” Her narrator dances on the border between carefree fun and self-destruction, only sinking deeper into the mire the more she struggles to escape it.

It’s in the chorus that “Breakfast for Dinner” cracks and lets a little light in: As if jarring itself out of a slump, the song’s intensity shoots up via cranked-gain guitar chords and twinkling keys that echo through subsequent verses. Meanwhile, Reese’s narrator has the beginnings of a breakthrough: “If you hate it here so much / Why don’t you just leave? / I’m starting to think / The problem’s not this city / It’s me.” It’s easy to get so wrapped up in routine, you stop seeing your own worst enemy, right there in the mirror.

“‘Breakfast for Dinner’ is a song about being caught in the vortex of life—feeling stuck in your situation, caught up in cyclical patterns. The song is reflective, yet triumphant and these feelings ring true in the sound,” Reese says in a statement. “I love the way this song turned out, because it is so dynamic and truly depicts the rollercoaster that life can be—the ups, the downs, and everything in between.”

“Breakfast for Dinner” is Reese’s first solo release since February’s “Pretty.”

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All songs featured in our Local Spotlight series can be found on our Fresh Squeeze Playlist and in rotation (at 20-minutes after the hour) on our music discovery radio station, The Independent.