Review: Rosalie Chilvers’ Haunt You

Rosalie Chilvers
Haunt You
Independent

Perth pop-rock princess Rosalie Chilvers brings darkness, vulnerability and a sprinkle of spice to her bombshell new single Haunt You. Pairing heavy guitar riffs with soft lyrics and haunting vocals, she creates a track that hovers between fragile and dangerous.

The song kicks off with a driving repetition of guitar strums, establishing an urgent pace as Chilvers voices her vengeful hopes to become a ghost of memories to haunt her ex. Lyrically, Haunt You dives into post-breakup resentment and the selfish longing to remain in someone’s thoughts after parting ways. She sings, “When you want to escape me, I’m in the cracks of your walls, in your favourite music, in the shadows in the halls,” describing how a once-close relationship has transformed into an ugly, haunting, memory-exclusive affair.

There is a particular vibe of Paramore’s Twilight-era Decode to the track, with its blend of angst, revenge, and heartbreak atop an angry guitar background. Chilvers, however, easily makes the sound her own. Haunt You provides the soundtrack to the moment after a breakup when one suddenly realises: they may not be as over their ex as first thought. It narrates the selfish dreaming of the satisfaction reaped from haunting the ex’s thoughts in return.

After several listens, Chilvers’ upbeat, angry, and venomous track is likely to linger in the ‘cracks of the walls’ long after it has ended. For fans of Paramore, The Beaches and Marina, Haunt You is out now.