PopMatters | Bonnie Whitmore Searches For Perspective With "Right/Wrong" (premiere + interview)

Bonnie Whitmore's upcoming album, Last Will and Testament, releases on 2 October and it's a powerful and thought-provoking follow-up to 2016's Fuck With Sad Girls. There's a danger with topical songwriters that their material will become dated and although Whitmore tapes into the zeitgeist here, the material full transcends the moment in which it arrives. The subject matter ranges from a friend's suicide (the title track), to the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris ("None of My Business) to rape culture ("Asked for It"). There's also a breathtaking rendition of Centro-Matic's "Flashes and Cables" that may very well supplant the original. In all, Last Will and Testament is a confident, necessary statement from an artist whose time has come.

Also included on the LP is "Right/Wrong", which Whitmore co-wrote with co-producer Scott Davis. "He has two kids, [under ten], and I asked him how he discussed divisions in our country with them," she notes. Her mind turned to a television icon of the past, though she realized her view didn't necessarily jibe with his. "I was actually thinking about Mr. Rogers when we were writing the song. But I don't think I'm a nice enough person to be Mr. Rogers."

Another familiar figure from her childhood ultimate provided some inspiration: Miss Frizzle from The Magic School Bus. "Miss Frizzle had this magic school bus, and the kids would go on these field trips. In order to learn about the anatomy, she would shrink the bus, and it would go into one of the kids, through the nose. You'd follow it around the body and learn about all kinds of stuff: Science and she'd tell kids, 'Go out there and experience life. Make messes!'" Whitmore recalls. "She always had this attitude of, 'Don't be afraid of adventure.' She wasn't necessarily just love and kindness like Mr. Rogers was, but she really would push boundaries, take something that might have seemed scary and turn it into something to be enjoyed. I always found her inspirational in that regard."