Summer Comfort, Loud Guitars: Rainbow City Park’s “What’s The Use”
Most would argue that indie music very much has a summer flavor to it. One where you roll the windows down and let the wind blow at you while you blast some music. Even though Summer is in its last month, the music is nowhere near slowing down! One of those releases comes from the band Rainbow City Park.
Rainbow City Park is a group that formed out of California’s indie scene in 2022. Since then, they have built a solid reputation in the scene, releasing consistent singles before they released their debut EP, Fruitless, in 2025.
Luckily for the fans, the wait for the follow-up will not be a long one as they are back with a new single, “What’s the Use.”
Right from the rip, the band kicks into the song with pounding drums and loud guitars before a solo eases us into the first verse of the song. The vocals gently come into the song immediately, reminding the listener of acts like Soccer Mommy, Snail Mail, Beach Bunny, and other indie acts of a similar vein. The peaks and valleys that the band plays with between its verses and choruses go a long way to adding character to the song. Even during the sections where they slow things down or pull it back ever so slightly, the energy remains.
That energy remains thanks to the amazing mixing but also the extremely solid musicianship. The mix brings everything to the forefront without being overwhelming to listen to. Meanwhile, you have the band knowing exactly what they want and how to get it out of this song. It is impressive to see how tight and solid this band is, being so young as an act.
With certain songs, they come across as comforting, and this song is one of those songs. It sits at a point where it isn’t too long or too short of a song. It has extremely welcoming vocals and lyrics that are tackling a relationship that never was, something that people can relate to at some point in their life, whether that relationship is platonic or romantic. The music goes along with it perfectly, complementing the emotions that are being sung by frontwoman Danielle Judith.
The band stated, "The goal of the project is to make music that we deeply care about that feels real to us," and they have done so with this track. It feels real, and as an audience member/listener, you can feel it in the music again thanks to how the band controls the emotion in the music and lyrics. It’ll be exciting to see where the band goes next on their journey because the groundwork they laid through this song leads to plenty of excitement for their next era!
