Diet Cig‘s first full length is a collection of bubbly indie pop tunes that tow the line between being cute and substantial in their social relevance. The duo’s newest music video for "Maid of the Mist" is no exception. "I am bigger than the outside shell of my body / and if you touch it without asking then you’ll be sorry," Alex Luciano belts in a verse, sharply adopting an outspoken feminist message that offers an assertive contrast to the tune’s cutesie synth hook. The track, though pop-oriented enough for the tamest listener, captures a kind of punk energy that compliments its lyrics. Luciano’s fuzzy guitars soar over Noah Bowman’s bouncy, driving rhythms. Diet Cig seems to be able to take the most stereotypical young adult issues and imbue them with a deeper sense of social and political purpose. When you look at the outfit’s young audience, you begin to understand the duo’s true genius. In a way, they’ve domesticated feminist punk for a much younger, milder audience that might never otherwise be exposed. This, however, doesn’t obliterate the genre’s core message, but rather, deepens and widens it. – Andrew Strader
