An emerging presence on the West Coast, Boorloo/ Perth-based artist-producer Skyuka has returned to a song she first wrote ten years ago.
Titled 'Fade', it explores the fallout one can experience when romance is not reciprocated from their partner.Husky, fragile, sorrow-filled vocals that at times soar into falsetto territory adding those emotive feels, Skyuka sings about heartache and compromising your own promises to make a one-sided relationship work.
Backed by a simple piano chord at the start, the sombre electronic beat slowly flickers to life seeping into the rhythm as the song builds before the squelchy yet dusty trip-hop melody launches the track into a mellowed-out zone.
"I was young and naive and had met someone who only wanted a casual relationship," Skyuka says, explaining the feelings involved with writing 'Fade'.
"I was hoping I could reciprocate this only to find that it left me feeling completely empty. "['Fade' is] about all the emotions we go through when someone can't meet us in the way that we want them too. It's about losing confidence in ourselves because we break our own promises."
Ahead of the song's release tomorrow (19 August), scenestr is thrilled to premiere the music video for 'Fade' today. Enjoy.
"'Fade' is your moody, synth-pop song that makes you feel all the feels like rewatching Disney as an adult does," adds Skyuka.
"I wrote 'Fade' about ten years ago, although the song was completely different back then. It was way too long and a bit all over the place.
"After being in the 'too hard basket' for so many years I finally came back to it. I was now a much more experienced songwriter and could look at the song objectively and was able to cull and arrange the song in a much more cohesive way."
The music video was directed by Skyuka with editing handled by Dylan Guy. "It has an ethereal aesthetic which was inspired by some of the fairy scenes in Disney's 1940s classic 'Fantasia' and alternates between stillness and chaos," Skyuka says.
"Sometimes I like creating videos that are very narrative driven and other times it's more about just capturing a feeling. Either way, I think the video really has to match the writing style of the song.
"'Fade' isn't a very narrative-driven song, it's more about mood and feeling so I felt that the video really had to mirror that. It was about capturing raw emotion and setting a tone through use of lighting and colours.
"The music video was shot at Huzzard Studio and also in a cul de sac close to my street. I also borrowed a stranger's trampoline for some of the shots as I really wanted to create a lot of movement visually in certain sections.
"I purchased a light projector online and asked my videographer to shine it on my face in particular scenes to help portray the dreamy, ethereal tone of the song. I am really glad I bought that light projector. I'm pretty sure it's meant to be for kids, but I think it was the best addition to my video."
'Fade' single launch takes place at Mojos Bar (Fremantle) 24 August.
