Since their first gig in November, Maraluso has been taking strides in the Charleston scene amidst the few months they have been playing together as a band. Consisting of Maralin Russell (vocals, guitar), Julius Cain (drums), Jeff Nissman (keys), David Green (guitar), and Ellis Lybrand (bass), the group has been working diligently, creating beautiful melodies to support the somber yet satire lyrics of Russell’s up close and confessional approach to songwriting.
“It’s just something I do when I’m just having a tough time,” Maralin says. “Most of the songs that we play tend to be about personal hardships that I’ve gone through, because that’s just when it flows out. Anytime something bad happens, I put everything on pause and have to sit down and write about it.”
Prominent influences like Phoebe Bridgers and Clairo, Russells’ background in classical guitar and love for alternate tunings, Lybrands’ takeaways from Robert De Leo and John Paul Jones’ basslines, and Greens’ rich vocabulary of jazz harmony are all what give this music it’s edge and depth. Russells’ dominant vocals over the band’s alternative-pop mannerisms create a bold, familiar angst that echoes reminiscence to Alanis Morrissette.
Maraluso joined Corey Cambell (Babe Club) to produce their debut single, “Still in Luck”, which was released on all platforms February 21st. Since this was the band’s first time recording, it brought up a lot of new perspectives to the way they thought about their music as they sat down and dissected it.
“I [Russell] got there for the first half day, and the song sounded so different from what we used to play. We kind of rearranged the entire thing, but we didn’t have Jeff. We didn’t schedule Jeff to come until the night before, I went to a party and we met, and then the next 12 hours after that, he was there. So, we definitely rearranged the song a lot. And that’s the cool thing about Corey, he’s really inventive”.
The band spent two and a half days in the studio going track by track, figuring out how to execute the vision in front of them; an overwhelming experience—especially for Russell—who had been holding onto this song since February of 2024.
“The last day we definitely got more experimental and spent a lot of time just working on fun stuff. Corey worked so quickly, and by the end of the session, he had a rough mix and sent it to me. I’d never done that before, and I’d always wanted to, and it made me emotional. I started crying. I was so happy because I wrote this song at such a dark time in my life and got nothing out of the situation that it came from. So to finally get something and more from it, I felt like a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders.”
Maraluso celebrated their success with a single-release show hosted by the Charleston Sound. Despite the freezing temperatures, many fans came to show support for the band and enjoy a night of live music, ringing in the major step for the band.
Some even knew the lyrics, singing it back to them on stage. If you haven’t caught them yet, you’re ‘still in luck’ and can see them perform at Music Farm on March 13th and the Charleston Sound on March 29th.
Stream the single and see more photos from our interview below. All photos by Grace Kreider (@gracekreiderphoto).
