Terror Jr made a playlist for their own funeral
Terror Jr appeared on the national stage through one of those too-good-to-be-true internet fairytales; in 2016, Kylie Jenner used the group’s song “3 Strikes” in a commercial for her lip gloss, sending fans on a wild hunt to find out more about whoever was responsible for its bleeding-edge millennial-friendly electro-pop. Soon enough, rumors emerged that the project was Jenner herself making a secret play for pop stardom, spurred on by the discovery of Jenner’s name on an ASCAP form (a music industry royalties database) associated with the song. For their part, the group played coy—they responded to a Teen Vogue interview with nothing but grape emojis, which fans suspected was a reference to an old Jenner tweet about the fruit.
Eventually, the truth came out; Jenner was not actually involved in the project, which was a trio comprised of veteran Los Angeles producer Felix Snow, David “Campa” Singer-Vine (formerly of The Cataracs), and Lisa Vitale, AKA Lisa Terror. As a group, they’ve spent the last year expanding on the world of their first single over the course of three mixtapes: Bop City; Bop City 2: TerroRising; and Bop City 3: The Girl Who Cried Purple. There’s always been a current of depravity beneath their music’s sparkling veneer. Vitale’s lyrics often touch on drugs, sex, and even our dangerous political climate. In light of the duo’s flirtation with the dark side, we thought they’d be the perfect candidates to make us a playlist for their own funeral.
“Dreams,” Fleetwood Mac
VITALE: Stevie Nicks’s voice is contained but you can sense the power behind it. She never over-sings. She is enchanting and sensual but never gives away too much of herself—she’s magic. When I perform with Terror Jr, I always have her in the back of my head.
“Twilight,” Elliott Smith
SINGER-VINE: Sadness that makes you fly. The GOAT sings.
“Never Let Me Down,” Kanye West
VITALE: This is the song that had me listening to The College Dropout over and over. It got me into Jay-Z too. At the time I was only listening to 60’s and 70’s rock, and this album expanded my appreciation of music.
“Dreams,” The Cranberries
SINGER-VINE: This is the first song where I saw a movie that I starred in play in my head while listening to it.
“Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” The White Stripes
VITALE: Played it when I was first learning guitar; it’s the opener on White Blood Cells. Reminds me of high school and hanging out in my friend’s basement.
“Killa Cam,” Cam’ron
SINGER-VINE: In high school I used to play this in the shower every morning and get so hyped. This beat… The Heatmakerz are legendary. It feels like The Lion King. Cam’ron floating through it, giving you a peek into his world. I was captivated.
“Simon & Garfunkel,” Cecilia
VITALE: I listened to this album, Bridge over Troubled Water, so much in junior high. This is one of their fluffier pop songs but I love that shit.
SINGER-VINE: I always imagined T-Pain covering this and it being amazing. Cecilia must be a bad bitch.
