Since the moment humans crawled from the primordial ooze, descended from the trees, appeared in the Garden of Eden, or stepped from the spaceship, we have each sought – and usually failed spectacularly – to change our Facebook status to “In A Relationship.” In the the Paleolithic Era, Ogg Zuckerberg collected a fortune in saber-toothed tiger pelts by going around to each cave and announcing, “Thag Jones in relationship with Neanderthal girl from across river.” Hearing the news, Thag’s sister shook her head and said, “It long-distance relationship. It not last.”

And when the inevitable breakup came to pass, Thag retreated into his cave and spent the next month drawing pictures of bison on the walls, drinking cheap Moscato, and eating ice cream straight from the carton. Then one morning Thag emerged from his cave, killed a woolly mammoth, and dumped the bloody carcass in his ex’s driveway.

In the second grade, I fell in love with Catherine Johnson. She was smart, petite, could spell Mississippi, was Mrs. Byrom’s pet, and she took up with that fat kid David Wright who wore the same blue football jersey every day. At the end of the year she moved to Illinois, thank God, so I didn’t have to look at her face every damn day for the rest of my life. And guess what, Catherine Johnson? I am so over you. Don’t bother calling.

In her new single, “All The Good Comebacks,” Axons explores the subtle relief we each experience when we are finally ready to Get On With Our Life.

It’s so pathetic it’s a major drag
I’m tired, I’m lonely, but mostly I’m just mad
All of these memories just make me gag
Like breathing underwater in dreams I’ve had

“From a lyrical standpoint,” Axons told us, “the song is about the feeling of being ‘over it.’ Whatever ‘it’ is — it could be a person, a relationship, a situation, or a pattern of thinking that’s holding you back and making you unhappy. I didn’t overthink the words.”

While Axons’ previous efforts have leaned towards electronica, “All The Good Comebacks” falls solidly into power pop, with a classic guitar riff and a chorus that will be stuck in your head after a single listen. She describes the engagement of the two genres as a product of evolution:

“When I was a teenager, I was totally obsessed with Weezer. I learned to play guitar using tabs for their songs. Even as my interests have expanded and I’ve focused more on writing electronic music and producing, I’ve always gravitated towards catchy, hooky power pop. I’ve had the vague idea in the back of my mind that I’d like to write some songs that combine the guitar pop I love with the dance music I’ve been producing for the past few years. I’ve tried a few times, and I think that this song is my most successful experiment with that to date.”

And of course the inevitable Guitar Player question: What equipment do you use?

“I sequenced the drums in Logic using samples from the NI Maschine library. The synth is an Alesis Micron (that I fear is on its last legs). I play a Gibson SG Special (my favorite piece of musical equipment) through a Fender Blues Jr. I recorded, mixed and mastered the song in Logic.”

Many thanks to Axons for sharing her music with Reverb Raccoon’s vast hoard of loyal readers. When she is not making music, Axons is Adele Nicholas, a Chicago-based civil rights lawyer who represents victims of police misconduct and employment discrimination.

Join Adele on Facebook, visit her website, follow her on Twitter and Instagram, listen to her tracks on Soundcloud, and download her singles and LP’s from Bandcamp.

Now go out there and say adiós, muchacho to whatever bad memory is making you gag. Good night, Catherine Johnson, wherever you are…

Photo by Chien-An Yuan.