Dusty Durston Releases Indie-Rock Single 'Valley Girls (Balisongs)'

On the rise indie artist, Dusty Durston has released "Valley Girls (Balisongs)," a song written as a heartfelt love letter to Los Angeles, the city that gave him his second chance. It is available for streaming on all digital platforms now.

Feeling creatively heartbroken and fearful that his days as a musician might be over, Dusty Durston, like many others, migrated to L.A. in hopes that a change of scenery would inspire his next move, and it did. A '90s underground rock-tinged track, "Valley Girls (Balisongs)" explores the sharp contrast everyone who lives in the City of Angels eventually uncovers; the dynamic between winners and losers, beauty and ugliness, and how in L.A., these dynamics are subject to change at any given moment.

"Valley Girls (Balisongs)" also celebrates the energy of the city and how it always seems to lead people to where they need to be. "So many of us flock to L.A. with a shared dream, and then life does its thing and shows us something completely unexpected, different, and true," Durston said. "And that's really the reason I find it so fulfilling to live here. I'm lucky to be able to make art that attempts to capture the energy and celebrate it."

The second single released by Dusty Durston in 2022, "Valley Girls (Balisongs)" follows Durston's scruffy debut single "de Sade," which was fueled by Stephen Malkmus-esque guitar and intentionally fragmented electronic noises, ala Odelay era Beck and was championed by publications including Ones To Watch and Grimy Goods.

Listen to the new single here: