Charlotte Sands Wants To Start Over With Pity

by | Nov 17, 2023

If 2023 has been great to Charlotte Sands (and it has: winning the Heavy Music Award for Best Breakthrough Album, powering into arenas across the UK and Europe as special guest to 5 Seconds of Summer, and writing and recording her debut album), 2024 looks set to be bigger still. That eagerly anticipated album, can we start over?, will finally be unleashed on January 24th and the following months will see Sands taking those songs to the world at large, including her first set at the UK’s renowned Download Festival. In the meantime, this year brings one final highlight for the 27 year old as she shares the new single pity.

Charlotte Sands @ Hammersmith Apollo

Charlotte Sands @ Hammersmith Apollo (Kalpesh Patel)
Charlotte Sands @ Hammersmith Apollo (Kalpesh Patel)

The most vitriolic of her recent singles, pity plays out raw, punchy and direct – a barbed wire guitar riff snaking around her searing, full-throttle vocal attack as the track’s sonic dynamics leap from threatening verses to a visceral shout along hook. As with the best of Sands’ discography, pity channels vulnerable emotions into a blood-letting, cathartic release in a way that will connect with her ever-growing following.

Of the single Charlotte says: “pity’is a song about meeting ‘the perfect person’ and wishing you could be more like them. It’s about the feeling of jealousy and comparing yourself but also about the experience of being captivated by someone else’s existence. Making this song was such a fun experience, I wanted the production to feel like a high energy show opener while the melody stayed simple and repetitive so everyone could scream the words together when we finally get to perform it live.”

Check out the David O’Donohue-directed video for pity below:

pity joins use me and get over it in generating pre-release hype for the can we start over? album. Those three tracks sprawl across the sonic spectrum of the record’s varying moods, moving confidently from dark pop atmospherics to angsty, ‘90s-style alt-rock, and classic singer-songwriter vibes which reveal her deep-seated vulnerabilities. As an album which holds a mirror up to who Charlotte is right now, it feels right that it seemed to dictate its own direction. It took shape last May when Charlotte arrived in Los Angeles for what was intended to be a brief few sessions with Jutes, Alex Nice and Keith ‘Ten4’ Sorrells. But the songs took shape not only quickly but at a career-high standard with that team writing all three of the album’s singles so far, providing Charlotte with the platform to complete the biggest statement of her career to date.

Charlotte Sands @ Hammersmith Apollo

Charlotte Sands @ Hammersmith Apollo (Kalpesh Patel)
Charlotte Sands @ Hammersmith Apollo (Kalpesh Patel)

Sands has just announced details of her can we start over? world tour. It starts with over a month of shows across North America from early March before heading to Europe in late May and closing with a London show at The Garage on June 21st. Tickets for the shows are available here.

Lizzie Esau Is Less Bleak And More Sublime At The Grace

Stevie Wonder @ BST Hyde Park 2025 (Bethan Miller-Carey)

A Night In Wonderland: Stevie Wonder And Guests Delight At BST Hyde Park 2025

“Awwwwight!” drawls Stevie Wonder, arms flung wide, grinning like a teenager trying on cockney charm for the first...
Neil Young @ BST Hyde Park (Trudi Knight)

Dance, Shadow And Harvest Under The Full Moon: Van Morrison, Yusuf Islam And Neil Young And The Chrome Hearts At BST Hyde Park 2025

Gone are the sparkled cowgirls and pop princesses of previous BST gigs. It’s the turn of the Baby Boomer generation to make up the core crowd of Hyde Park – a sea of grey hair, straw hats, and sensible shoes. They reapply sun cream religiously, have brought picnic blankets, and can be forgiven for taking their time getting up and down from the ground between acts. This is the generation that invented outdoor rock and folk festivals – and they’re here to show the rest of us how it’s done.

Poptones (Rune Gro-Nielsen)

Poptones Play Their Wild Card With New Single ‘Say Something Now’ Ahead of Forthcoming Album ‘Pure’

Danish experimental rock trio Poptones have unveiled their new single Say Something Now, offering a taste of the unpredictability and emotional depth that defines their upcoming sophomore album Pure, out 26th September via Happy Metal Records. Where lead single Skin Of Sea teased a shift toward expansive and instinctive composition, Say Something Now dives headlong into that experimental impulse—guided, intriguingly, by the rules of UNO. Yes, the beloved card game.

Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age @ iTunes Festival 2013 (Kalpesh Patel)

Queens Of The Stone Age Announce Intimate European ‘Catacombs’ Tour, Including Special London Show

Queens Of The Stone Age have today unveiled details of their eagerly awaited Catacombs European Tour – a string of uniquely atmospheric shows inspired by their acclaimed 2024 Alive In The Catacombs performance. The tour, set for October 2025, will include a standout UK date at London’s Royal Albert Hall on 29th October, promising a rare and intimate reimagining of the band’s formidable back catalogue.

Alice Merton @ BST Hyde Park 2025 (Trudi Knight)

Alice Merton Brings Sharp Pop Precision To The Rainbow Stage At BST Hyde Park 2025

As the sun began to dip behind the trees in Hyde Park on 11th July, a throng of festival-goers packed into the Rainbow Stage area, drawn by the magnetic presence of German-Canadian artist Alice Merton. The singer-songwriter—best known for her breakout hit No Roots—delivered a punchy, emotionally agile set that brought the stage to a vibrant close, just before Neil Young And The Chrome Hearts took the spotlight over on the festival’s main Great Oak Stage.

Brian Molko of Placebo @ Brixton Academy (Kalpesh Patel)

Placebo Announce Deluxe Collection This Search For Meaning, Featuring Documentary, Live Album & Bonus Tracks

Anglo-American alt-rock icons Placebo have announced This Search For Meaning, a four-disc deluxe collection arriving 12th September via SO Recordings. The package offers a comprehensive portrait of the band’s current creative era, combining introspective documentary filmmaking with live performance energy and exclusive music content.

Die Spitz (Anatheme)

Die Spitz Announce Debut Album ‘Something To Consume’, Drop Ferocious New Single ‘Throw Yourself To The Sword’

Austin punk outfit Die Spitz have announced their debut album Something To Consume, arriving on 12th September via...
Dean Lewis (Sean Loaney)

Dean Lewis Releases Deluxe Edition Of ‘The Epilogue’ with Powerful New Single ‘Hurt So Bad’

Australian singer-songwriter Dean Lewis has unveiled the deluxe edition of his acclaimed third studio album The Epilogue, alongside the release of an emotionally raw new single, Hurt So Bad.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This

Share Thing