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Oct 22, 2021 By Caleb Campbell

Fronted by genderfluid musician and director Chanel Samson (they/them), LA-based band Chanel & the Circus earned acclaim pre-pandemic with a brilliantly campy style, impossibly potent melodies, and circus-themed live act. During quarantine, with their circus grounded, Chanel wrote and directed a new visual EP, Wake Up, due out November 16th. Fans got their first taste of the EP this summer with “Life Takes Time” and today Chanel & The Circus are back with a new single, “Impossible Standards.”

Following the rousing tone of “Life Takes Time,” Chanel delivers a similarly ebullient track with “Impossible Standards,” once again sorting through difficult emotions with upbeat melodic indie pop. Their latest effort is more warm and melodic, trading soaring power pop hooks for chiming instrumentation and a shuffling rhythmic feel, while still retaining the potent melodies that make their music undeniable.

Chanel says of the track, “I broke up with someone at the start of quarantine and blamed myself for having impossible standards, only later did I realize I was freaking out about the idea of a relationship, rather than the person. Naturally, I wrote an extremely upbeat song about it, warning people to stay friends with me or I may shoot them dead in the heart :D I’ve been working through my attachment issues since.”

Check out the song below and stream here. Wake Up is due out November 16th.