Swedish musician Becky and the Birds – real name Thea Gustafsson – has shared the final primer ahead of the release of her debut album ‘Music Makes Me Cry Now’, out this Friday via 4AD.
Following previous singles, ‘Anymore‘, ‘I made my baby cry‘ and ‘When she holds me‘, ‘To trust you’ taps into the malleable sonic imprint Thea has established this era. Incorporating hyper-pop flourishes, treated vocals and lashings of electric guitar, the track’s slow-build to a crescendo captures Thea’s frenzied quest for emotional equilibrium after a break-up.
Of the single, Thea says: “This song is for anyone who’s dealing with trust issues. When something has happened that broke your trust for someone, how do you find it again and not let it eat you up forever in every way possible? And most importantly, how do you trust yourself and your intuition without going insane? I wanted the production to work with this concept to soundtrack the madness and darkness that one can get stuck in.”
Becky and the Birds began laying the groundwork for her debut album in 2021, largely informed by a wide array of sources, including: insight from past collaborations with Dijon, Seinabo Sey, and Lapsley; obscure Bandcamp deep-dives; visits to live sets across London and her native Stockholm; a variety of media fixations (including Derek Cianfrance’s Blue Valentine, Charlotte Wells’ Aftersun, and Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth); and her emotional processing in the aftermath of a life-altering breakup.
The resulting ‘Music Makes Me Cry Now’ is a self-styled, self-motivated creation with Thea assuming complete creative control over her output. Her voice is the focal point, her augmented voice and the sampled audio-bites are a time lapse of her experiences, allowing listeners to follow her through a riveting journey of healing and rediscovery.
To commemorate her release, Becky and the Birds will perform two live shows in Stockholm and a Ones To Watch showcase at London’s The George Tavern on November 20th. See the full list of dates below, and for tickets and information, head HERE.
Listen to ‘To trust you’ below.
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Photo Credit: Oscar Lindqvist
