Get In Her Ears

Introducing Interview: Nghtfall

Having spent the last few years garnering streams and fans for their emotion-strewn alt-pop offerings, Toronto based non-binary artist Bradley Milosevic-Hill, aka Nghtfall, has recently shared their heartfelt new single ‘I’ll Be Fine‘. Shimmering with a twinkling musicality and a soaring, anthemic splendour, Nghtfall wears their heart on their sleeve with this raw reflection on identity and being accepted for being your true self.

We caught up with Bradley to find out more…

Hi Bradley, welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I’m an independent queer non-binary artist from Toronto that releases music under the name Nghtfall.

What initially inspired you to start creating music?
I’ve loved music since a very early age and started writing songs in my head long before I knew I was going to become a musician. It’s really the only thing I’ve ever been this passionate about.

You’ve recently released your poignant new single as Nghtfall, ‘I’ll Be Fine’, can you tell us a bit about this? Is it focused on any particular themes?
This song is about coming to terms with how people’s view of me has changed since I came out as non-binary. There’s a lot of my fears and anxieties in the lyrics. Especially the feeling that a lot of people’s love is temporary when you know one detail about you would change their view of you completely. I feel so free in being able to express this in my music now, because it’s something I’ve struggled with for a while.

We love your heartfelt, anthemic pop sounds, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
It ranges from modern artists like Nothing,Nowhere and Halsey to stuff I grew up with like Fall Out Boy. Though honestly I get inspiration from all kinds of music.

You’re based in Toronto – in ‘normal’ times, how is the music scene there? Is it a good place for an emerging musician?It’s definitely a great place to watch live music, but I wouldn’t say it’s a super good place for emerging artists. It’s so competitive and a lot of the live music in the city is dominated by established US artists that often play there as their only show in Canada for that tour. I don’t really think about the local scene when it comes to my own music that much, but it is a great place to go to shows.

How have you been connecting with your audience and other musicians during the pandemic?
Maybe it’s because everyone’s been inside but I feel like I’ve made more connections than ever through social media this year. I do a lot of remote collaborations even before the pandemic so this past year or so has almost been better for a lot of what I do in a weird way. Plus it’s given me more time to find ways to connect with new audiences online.

And has there been anything/anyone specific that has been inspiring you, or helping to motivate you, throughout these strange times?
I’m a huge movie & tv nerd so I’m always getting inspired by that. I’ve gotten really into David Lynch’s movies over the pandemic & recently read his book on creativity. I just find him such an incredible and inspiring artist. Also, I bring her up all the time, but Savannah Brown is someone whose writing and poetry I am such a huge fan of and find super inspiring. I wish I could write as well as her!

How do you feel the music industry is for new artists at the moment – would you say it’s difficult to get noticed?
It definitely is, and a lot of the conversations I have with other artists reflects that. However, there’s so many cool things you can do outside of “the industry” with social media to connect with an audience. You just have to be creative with it.

As we’re a new music focused site, are there any other upcoming artists that you’d recommend we check out?
There’s this local band Softcult that I discovered recently that makes super great music with a lot of feminist messages in it. I’ve had the chance to talk with them a bit on social media and they’re super nice too.

Finally, what does the rest of 2021 have in store for Nghtfall?
I’m going to be releasing regularly till at least the end of the year, so just expect a lot more music!

Massive thanks to Bradley for answering our questions!

Listen to Nghtfall’s latest single ‘I’ll Be Fine’ here:

July 27, 2021

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Track Of The Day: Dawn To Dawn – ‘Care’

Montreal based trio – Tess Roby, Adam Ohr and Patrick Lee – aka Dawn to Dawn – are due to release a full length LP in spring 2022 and are drip feeding singles throughout this year as an advance taster – ‘Care’ is the latest of these. It’s a gentle and stylish ode to the sheer joy felt when dancing away summer nights.

The track opens with laidback synths treading lightly over a chilled-out drum loop. First impressions are that this is either the song that you dance to at 3am in the club once the DJ has their flow on and the dance-floor is in full swing, or the song in your headphones the next morning as you make your way home. Roby’s shimmering vocals act as an extra textural layer rather than a front and centre feature of Dawn to Dawn’s sound. Long, warm, and breathy, the delivery is so sensual and relaxed you can almost hear the sunrise. The lyrics are minimalist, depicting a dance-floor crush walking away in the sunrise as the encroaching light cuts off the chance to catch up to them.

Dawn to Dawn have also created a stunning video clip to go with the track. Shot on 16mm, it has the feel of a ’70s/’80s home video and depicts three friends dancing wildly in the studio, driving the streets in early morning sunlight, sharing a glass of wine. Scenes are non-chronological and recreate the sense of lost time so familiar to anyone who has had a massive night out dancing with friends.

Watch the new video here:

‘Care’ is out now and is available on bandcamp.

Kate Sullivan
@katesullo

July 27, 2021July 27, 2021

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ALBUM: Anika – ‘Change’

Moving beyond the punishing sounds and default to doom-saying that’s often defined her previous work, Berlin-based musician Anika‘s new album Change is a more positive cut, possessing some of her most accessible work yet. Set for release via Sacred Bones & Invada Records on 23rd July, the album is not without its jagged, angsty moments, but on the whole it’s certainly a cleaner offering.

Fans of the musician’s existing output – a 2010 solo debut performed alongside Beak> and a string of releases with Exploded View – will recognise the blueprint of locked drum & bass grooves, noisy synths and Anika’s haunting voice floating above it with a cracked serenity that feels as though it could collapse into tears or hysterical laughter at any moment. The key sonic difference with Change is its polished quality, which lends a new refinement and approachability to Anika’s work. At times it feels a little too neat, lacking that terrifying, paint-stripping howl that makes for the best Exploded View tracks. Having said that, it opens up a new side to Anika, one that many will want to hear more from.

Anika reports that the words on Change were written largely “on the spot”, going some way to explaining the recourse to simple yet enigmatic refrains, felt most urgently on tracks like the thunderous opener ‘Finger Pies’ and the disquieting ‘Rights’. Her willingness to employ a smoother set of sounds allows for some unexpectedly great pop moments. ‘Critical’ is lead by a neat synth line that could have come straight from Jane Weaver’s Modern Cosmology, wonderfully plucking the song from the murk of a driving rhythm section.

‘Change’ is an excellent track, epitomising the huge shift Anika makes as an artist on this record. It offers a guarded optimism in its hedged refrain “I think we can change” and tempers the album’s concerns about the destructive nature of man, articulated on tracks like ‘Never Coming Back’ (inspired by Rachael Carson’s book Silent Spring and our destruction of the natural world), enabling us to find consolation in our agency as individuals to avert future consequences of human activity. It is telling that ‘Change’ is the eponymous track and that its central idea was chosen to be the defining theme of the album, creating room for a more sanguine outlook.

The album closes with ‘Wait for Something’, which, like ‘Change’, plays a crucial role in forging the overall mood of the piece. Emerging out of the claustrophobic terror of ‘Freedom’, we are encouraged to find solace in its vagueness, in the belief that some salvation will come, even if we cannot conceptualise the form it might take. People often draw the obvious and not entirely helpful comparison between Anika and Nico, but as the drums kick in here it feels more like we’re listening to the Velvet Underground’s Loaded, pushing us into the realm of unadulterated pop rock. Sitting on those flying keys and cymbal crashes, listeners can really feel the joyous optimism Anika seeks to leave them with.

Sonically drifting away from brutal electro-terror and thematically more positive than earlier efforts, Anika’s Change is an interesting transitional album in sound and spirit, not entirely comfortable in its optimism, but telling for its willingness to seek it out.

Follow Anika on bandcamp, Spotify, Twitter, Instagram & Facebook

Photo Credit: Sven Gutjahr

Lloyd Bolton
@lloyd_bolton

July 22, 2021July 22, 2021

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LISTEN: Novaa – ‘Audre’

Unsettling yet somehow sensual, Novaa‘s single ‘Audre’ is a poignant tale of oppression, fatigue and the silencing of black voices. Lifted from her recent album She’s A Rose, the Berlin-based indie singer-songwriter pays homage to American feminist poet and civil rights activist Audre Lorde on her latest track.

Layering placid vocals with lush electronic beats, the rigid strumming of a muted guitar and the serenity of softly played wind instruments, ‘Audre’ is pure poetry. There is something Black Swan-esque about the music video. With a stripped back, grayscale aesthetic and simple, yet jittery dancing movements, Novaa expresses the heavy emotions of the song visually as well as sonically. Like stars, the rhymes stud the underlying darkness of the track with light.

When she sings “It is heavy / to carry these shackles,” Novaa shines a spotlight on the mental and physical exhaustion that comes with fighting an oppressor. The past few years have been somewhat traumatising for many minorities – the Black community in particular – and with the constant bombardment of horrific hate crimes and police brutality on our timelines, it is understandable if people feel beat.

Vaulting off from Audre Lorde’s political message that caring for oneself in troubling times is a radical act of self-preservation, Novaa’s new track powerfully illuminates the painful foundations of activism and reminds us that our fight for equality is far from over.