Girl at the Rock Shows

I’m not going to lie, today has gotten off to a rocky start. Between the non-stop work and issues coming through my email, and the fact that I really didn’t have a great time at the concert last night, things are just feeling a bit rough, and I’m honestly already ready to call it a day and just try again tomorrow, but it’s only 8:30 AM. I still have a long day ahead of me and need to get some stuff done, so I’m hoping that starting my day off with “Counterfeit” from Joshua Pearlstein may turn things around for me.

“Counterfeit” has a darkness to it that will instantly draw you in, but don’t get it twisted, this is far from a dark song. The beginning of this song has an almost dance-like beat to it that is nothing short of infectious. Just when you start getting moving and grooving to that beat, Joshua flips the script and takes that infectious energy and turns it into something a bit more mature and serious. There’s a clear break in this song, a moment when everything changes, and you feel like you’re being transported into a whole other world, but the way these two worlds work in harmony is oddly perfect. I think my favorite thing about this track is not only the unique composition, but the fact that you can feel Joshua Pearlstein’s heart throughout the four-minute track.

Now that you’ve read my take on this track, here’s a little background from the one and only Joshua Pearlstein:

“Counterfeit” is perhaps the most personal song I’ll have released to date. It’s about the darker side of chasing something great, a feeling I know a little bit too well. When you’re trying to break through, there’s pressure, self-doubt, imposter syndrome, hunger. This song is my experience with that tension. “Counterfeit” also covers self-indulgence, and the change that can happen when you get pulled under by ego and ambition to be somebody. The lyrics move between confidence and collapse. The verses talk about the numbing and distraction, while the choruses acknowledge how much I’m willing to do to make it.

After the first part of the song ends, the song takes a darker turn. I sing about me trying to prove to myself that I’m ok; that I don’t have problems; that I’m not a counterfeit (like a counterfeit printed bill). The B-section is where the mask slips. “I swear I’m fine / I tried / I lied / you cried” is me admitting I’ve been losing myself. By the end, when I say “I don’t feel bad about it,” it’s not confidence – it’s acceptance. I’m acknowledging I have truly lost myself in the process.”

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