Bubblegum bopstar Marxoxo’s sophomore EP, Fantasy v Reality, gives you a vision of a teenage dream gone wrong. Over its 5 tracks, Marxoxo teleports you into a surreal fantasy of a picturesque romance, with soaring vocals on tracks such as “Magical Boy High feat. Nitrah Neon,” which takes a sharp turn into a toxic and manipulative nightmare as they snap and bite back on “For Anything.” Just as the chopped and skewed dynamic settles in, it comes to a ceasefire on the closing track and latest single, “Like it’s the First Time (feat. Sabby Sousa).” The release is set for November 11th and precedes the release of the music video, edited by Lenoremelo, for “Like it’s the First Time (feat. Sabby Sousa)” on November 20th.
Marxoxo began experimenting with solo music in middle school. They dropped out of school band to learn piano, and soon downloaded their first DAW, releasing a few (now deleted) mixtapes in high school as they honed their craft. Marxoxo’s music pulls sonic and visual inspiration from anime, kawaii, and underground queer culture, and snuggles lightly between the hyperpop of Charli XCX and crossover R&B of Mariah Carey. But more than that, it’s a juxtaposition of identities, balancing small town life with electric city nights.
Marxoxo is a sought after fixture in the world of digital events, performing regularly and curating their own Club XOXO concert series. They’ve also been featured by tastemaker indie blogs and TIDAL’s editorial We Are Everywhere playlist.
About Fantasy v Reality, they say, “I wrote this project out of inspiration and destruction of a relationship that revealed itself to be a nightmare. Duality is a huge theme in my life and in my music; the first half is super sweet and saccharine while the second half is cold and neurotic. They’re two sides of the same coin; the coin being an abusive relationship. Fantasy v Reality concludes with ‘Like it’s the First Time’ tipping the scales thematically while inviting the listener to either break free or start it over again. ”
