Kevin Bronson on July 1st, 2020

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Long Beach duo Soft Palms — Julia Kugel of the Coathangers and her husband Scott Montoya (formerly of The Growlers) — have released the second single from their forthcoming album, and it strikes a familiar chord.

“‘Baddy’ is about a very painful time,” Kugel says of the undulating dream-pop tune. “As the chorus says, ‘In my angst, your path is the same as mine / I can’t tell us apart’ — because I believe we are a reflection of one another, all on parallel paths.

“Taking care of your mental health is the most socially responsible thing you can do right now. In order to remain active and engaged in current political and social movements, we all must make an effort to tend to our mental health. Throughout our musical careers we have been advocates of music and art as healing, meditative and vital to general health and well being. Through our non-profit Studios for Schools and our free community-based music festival Happy Sundays, we have advocated for all people to have access to self-expression and the therapeutic benefits of art. Music has been an outlet for speaking about the issues of the world along with our personal struggles and those of our families.”

The duo’s video for “Baddy” pays tribute to Montoya’s grandfather, Reymundo Montoya, who died from injuries sustained as a result of a fall during the construction of Disneyland. The visuals are inspired by the rides he built: Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean. Scott built a hologram projection system inspired by the technique used to project the dancing ghosts in Haunted Mansion, creating the ghost-like images on a moving still life.

The self-titled album “Soft Palms” will be out July 31 via Everloving Records.

The duo will be hosting a listening party for the record’s test pressing at 6 p.m. Friday on Instagram Live.

||| Watch: The video for “Baddy”

||| Previously: “Rainbows”