For fans of Phoebe Bridgers and The Cure, Monster is the latest string to Wakefield-based, Bradford-born indie riser Oliver Pinder. Loaded with his typical storytelling, discussing themes of anger in grief, Monster is a glowing follow-up to Such An Angel, released earlier this year.
Discussing the single, Oliver explains:
“‘Monster’ was the first song I ever wrote with Jack Segal, and it’s funny because we’ve gone on to write so much together since then. I think what connected us straight away was a willingness to chase the uncomfortable truth in a song, and this one definitely came from that place. For a long time, I carried a lot of anger about losing my dad when I was 12. As a kid, you don’t always know where to put that grief, so you look for someone to blame.
‘Monster’ started from those feelings and the stories we’d tell ourselves about what happened, but as the song developed it became about something much bigger: growing up and realising the people who raised you were just trying to figure life out too. The final verse completely changes the song’s perspective. What begins as a finger-pointing exercise ends with empathy. It’s about reaching an age where you can finally see the weight somebody else was carrying, the sacrifices they made and the battles they fought that you were too young to understand. In a strange way, it’s a song about forgiveness – not just of other people, but of yourself. It’s one of the most personal songs I’ve ever released.”
Supported by BBC 6 and, more recently, championed by Radio X, Oliver Pinder is part of a wider movement of indie artists bursting onto the scene from the North of England. With an EP on the way for later this year and an album on the way in 2026, Oliver Pinder is one to keep tabs on.
Stream Monster below:
