Formerly operating under the acoustic-focused moniker For Those Who Cannot See, Montclair-based artist Nicolle Maroulis is now stepping out with a bold new sound as Hit Like A Girl. Maroulis, who identifies as non-binary shared in an extensive feature with New Noise Magazine, “I’ve noticed there are band names that are gender-specific that don’t identically match the genders of the band members, but I also don’t really believe gender exists at all at the end of the day. I’m hoping to have this whole ‘Rosie The Riveter’ feel to us.”
With that, Hit Like A Girl is now sharing their debut album, You Make Sense, a collection of eight deeply personal odes to love and love lost with a rock sound reminiscent of Waxahatchee, Jay Som or Soccer Mommy.
“The name of the record actually has a short story behind it,” Maroulis reveals. “I used to live in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, which is a very pretty town. One day, I rode my bike to the nearest Starbucks to get some coffee and just clear my head a little. There’s a little creek that runs behind it that I’d like to sit down by and drink my coffee. I was there one day, and I looked up at the wall, and written in very small text was: ‘you make sense.’ It all clicked in my head. I went home immediately to touch up all the songs I’d started but never finished. Some of these songs are a few years old, but most of them I wrote for the record, and they’re all mostly about some girl—typical. I was only with this girl for about a month, and we never even established a physical relationship, just an emotional one. I felt like she was the most compatible person I’ve ever been with, so when she decided to call it off, it really messed me up.”