March Fry’s “Selfish” offers a revealing glimpse into an artist still defining the shape of her voice. Rather than leaning into the grand gestures that often accompany a debut, Fry finds material in the messier, quieter territory of human relationships, where affection, resentment, humour and regret can exist in the same conversation.
The track arrives as the second offering from In No Time, Fry’s self-written and self-produced debut album, a project built around letting go, growing up and finding a way back to oneself. Across that premise, “Selfish” feels less like a dramatic confession than an observation of human behaviour. Its subject is recognisable, but Fry’s treatment gives it personality.
Musically, she draws from Neo Soul, Indie Pop, Bedroom Pop and Indie R&B, but the genre references never seem to become the point. Instead, they provide a flexible backdrop for songwriting that values intimacy over spectacle. There is an appealing looseness to the track’s lighter, almost childlike sensibility, particularly because it sits against a more complicated emotional idea. Fry understands that people rarely behave as neatly as the stories we tell about them.
That is where the song’s humour becomes important. Rather than treating emotional pain with solemnity, Fry allows some playfulness into the frame. It makes the writing feel lived-in rather than carefully dramatised. The result is a song that can be emotionally perceptive without becoming self-serious.
There is also a sense that Fry is still testing the boundaries of this sound. The blend of soulful musicianship and bedroom-pop intimacy works best when the production leaves room for the emotional detail in her writing. At times, the track’s breezier character risks softening the sharper edges of its subject, but that tension ultimately feels more interesting than a straightforwardly heavy treatment would.
With “Selfish,” Fry continues to establish In No Time as a record concerned less with presenting a polished version of adulthood than with documenting its contradictions. That may be the most promising thing about her emerging voice: she finds significance in ordinary emotional experiences and trusts them to carry the weight.
Featured Image: Artist Supplied
