Let us take you back to 2011. Egypt is in revolt. The people of London are rioting. Earthquakes are wreaking havoc in New Zealand and Japan. Amy Winehouse is dead, for christ sake. Life is bleak.  But wait – what’s that we can hear in the distance? It’s a girl with a sugary voice. And it sounds like she’s... imploring a boy to... pick up the phone and... give her a call? Oh happy day mama, it’s Carly Rae Jepsen! Come to remind us all that there *is* joy in the world, through the twinned arts of addictive melody and sassy flippance! And so after that, 2011 felt better for a spell. But as quickly as she swooped in, Carly seemed to disappear, destined to be banished forever to the dusty catacombs of early teenies one-hit-wonderdom. Right? Wrong. Flashforward to 2015 and Carly was back with E•MO•TION, a juggernaut of solid-platinum pop. Except this time – she was here, she was queer, and she weren’t goin’ nowheer. From the blaring trumpets of 'Run Away With Me' reminding you of the one that got away, to the rhythm of 'Warm Blood' made to match your throbbing heartbeat, to the multi-layered intricacies of 'Boy Problems', it’s no wonder the album has been so revered by the queer community since its release. And rightly so. But, girl… did you know about E•MO•TION: Side B? Don’t miss this episode's companion playlist on Spotify and please feel free to slide into our DMs on Instagram at @auralfixationpodcast. Your hosts are @drew_down_under and @andrewdoyouthinkyouare.We came across some superb articles by likeminded individuals which inspired this episode. We strongly recommend you read this Stereogum article by James Rettig, "Carly Rae Jepsen's Queer Rennaissance" by Michael Waters and "The Enduring Appeal of Pop Stars Who “Flop”" by Chris Stedman.