Party Nails Biography
Party Nails debuted in 2015 on Neon Gold’s famed blog with “Break”, a heartbreak dancepop single inspired by happysad classics such as “Dancing On My Own” and “Blue Monday”. In 2016 Party Nails premiered “No Pressure” on Vice's Noisey blog—think Haim instrumentation paired with Taylor Swift melodies—before leaving a 360 deal and rebuilding independently. Her first full-length, Past Lives and Paychecks, was equal parts collaborations—Caleb Shreve, Ryan Nasci, Mereki Beach, among others—and self-produced, engineering and playing guitar, bass, synthesizers and programming electronics alone in her home studio. Her first US tour in 2017 (with PVRIS and Lights) ushered in a devoted fanbase, and her live performances continue to be a core facet of her artistry, being equal parts Madonna, Hayley Williams, and Sheryl Crow. In the studio, though, her muses are Robyn, Prince, SZA and Dolly Parton, to name a few.
Before she was Party Nails, Elana Carroll was a guitar-toting tween songwriter, playing any open mic she could near her hometown of Chatham, New York. Performing solo or with a band of seasoned adult players backing her up, she wailed lyrics about her family’s divorce, dreams of leaving her small town, and a then-undiagnosed anxiety disorder across biker bars and community centers, often met with tears from patrons moved by her fearless expression of raw emotion. At home she recorded herself with Garageband, instigating a love of music technology which continues to this day.
Since 2020 Party Nails has penned a song about period pride for Kathryn Hahn’s character to sing for Loren Bouchard’s Apple animated series Central Park, wrote and produced the Le Tigre-infused “Supernatural” for feminist rock duo Deap Vally, and continued to lend her vocals to other musicians (LŪN and Urban Heat both released music featuring Party Nails in 2022, and previous features include Battle Tapes, MitiS, Getter, Sequels and D.A. Stern).
This year started off with a bang with “Like U", a collaboration with Austin-based Boy Sim that PAPER called "reminiscent of '90s and early-2000s rave music". Her second single of 2023, "Bull In A China Shop", was dubbed "chaotically fun", "an irresistible experimental pop meets electronic bop", and "a thrilling, sonically unique arrangement" by the likes of Earmilk, Atwood Magazine and Metal Magazine. Her third single of the year, “Someway, Somehow” found its way onto Spotify Editorial playlists Fresh Finds, Fresh Finds Indie, and Undercurrents, and Paste Magazine called it “brash and rough and imploring, a love letter couched in punky instrumentals and intimate production.”
After wrapping a Pacific Northwest tour with San Francisco’s Gloomy June, Party Nails is back in the studio mixing, producing music for her artist clientele, and working on her third album. If history is any indication, Party Nails won’t stop expressing herself through music, and her best work as an artist is ahead of her.
LATEST PRESS RELEASE (LOS ANGELES, JULY 21, 2023) MORA MAY AGENCY
Party Nails’ latest offering, the single "Someway, Somehow", arrives during her west coast tour with Gloomy June, and is a cinematic ear massage ripe with vocal harmonies, fuzzed guitars, and a hook that pronounces boundless, timeless love. "This song feels like something I found. Like it always existed. Like I was on a walk and found it under a rock, as if it were a fossil waiting to be found. It's about the complete, full, forever love you feel for your partner, your parent, your child, your friend, humanity. The deep knowing that you will never, ever stop, in spite of all obstacles."
(A. Wilson, 2023)
photos by Naz Massaro
