Perth-based electro alt-pop artist, Anna O is a name you can expect to hear a lot more in the coming years.
After a three-year break between releasing new music, in February Anna O dropped the vivid, danceable track 'We've Got Time'.Now she's ready to release new single 'Set It On Fire' that continues her pattern of penning emotive lyrics paired to pulsating beats.
Ethereal and beautifully fragile dark pop tones are matched by sparkling, elegant synthpop for a dreamy production.
Then there's Anna's vocals – that fall somewhere in the realm of Vera Blue, Meg Mac and CXLOE – which nurture a calming influence, drawing you in with warmth offering hope as she sings about themes of self-discovery and finding one's way through life's challenges.
"'Set It On Fire' is one of the quickest songs I've ever written," shares Anna O. "One morning at some inhumane hour I lay awake staring into the dark after feeding my baby boy back to sleep.
"I was agitated and frustrated, but then this sense came over me that I was about to write a song, which is how songwriting tends to work for me. I tip-toed to our little office at the front of the house and this song poured out onto paper.
"I voice memo'd the melody for Luke [Minness, a producer who has worked with PRISCILLA, Have A Good Day, Yes Lenny], and sent it off. At our next studio session he'd already started production, and the song just flew together.
"It was our second song working together, and after that we knew we were onto a good thing making music together."
Ahead of the song's release tomorrow (19 May), scenestr is thrilled to premiere 'Set It On Fire' today. Enjoy.
"It's no surprise that lyrically it was still about this season of life that I was in the thick of; post-natal depression, stay at home mum, no understanding or diagnosis yet for me or my boys," adds Anna.
"Still unmedicated because I was too scared. What if I went on meds and changed? What if I couldn't feel anything at all? I couldn't figure out why things were so damn hard. I knew parenting would be hard, but this felt impossible for me.
"The thing that I love about this song though, and it's true in real life too, is the hopefulness in the middle of the unknown.
"As we pieced our situation together bit-by-bit and came to understand the challenges our family was facing, as well as getting as many supports as possible in place, we were making our own way.
"And for me, now very medicated (haha, but for real), when I found that breathe of fresh air, it was a feeling I wanted to hold on to: 'Hold this feeling like it's an ember, and set it on fire.'"
