Haute & Freddy - Big Disgrace

Before Michelle Buzz and Lance Shipp became Haute & Freddy, they spent years writing hits for some of the biggest names in pop music, including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, and Rauw Alejandro. With Big Disgrace, their debut album on Atlantic Records, they finally get to put all of that professional craft in service of something gloriously, unapologetically their own. As the duo put it simply: "Big Disgrace is all the eccentric, over-the-top parts of ourselves we thought we had to hide, on full display."

The result is 13 tracks of maximalist pop that crackles with soaring 1980s synths, irrepressible personality, and the kind of theatrical energy that spills off the stage and into the room. Drawing on the spirit of vintage circus aesthetics, baroque pageantry, and underground club culture, Haute & Freddy move through the album like a runaway carnival, crashing through polite society with wit, warmth, and complete conviction. Buzz's chameleonic vocals shift octaves and styles with ease, while Shipp's drumming and production keep everything moving with infectious momentum. Singles "Scantily Clad," "Dance the Pain Away," and "Anti-Superstar" each offer a different angle into a record that is consistently surprising and consistently fun.

The devotion of their Royal Court, as their fanbase is known, says everything. These are not ordinary pop fans. These are people who show up to shows in handmade jester hats and speak to each other in Renaissance Faire lingo, drawn together by music that invites them to celebrate the parts of themselves that rarely see the sun.

On limited red vinyl, as bold and vibrant as the music inside.