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Yenn’s latest shimmering electropop release is a manic “vision of hell”
After the success of her haunting debut, the artist is back with a sumptuous slice of glitchy electropop and the subject matter is darker than ever.
Written in response to a particularly disturbing nightmare Yenn had of “a vision of hell”, the sophomore song to her anxiety-laced debut feels very different in tone. Where tiptoe feels claustrophobic and breathless, How Much Sadness Can You Swallow? is expansive and luscious, flowing with almost nursery-rhyme-like melodies and climaxing in driving bass hits and lush stabs of woozy synth.
“Years ago, I had this vivid nightmare where I woke up in this old house and couldn’t remember who I was or why I was there. I was banging on doors and windows to try and escape but nobody could hear me and I realised I was in hell living the same day over and over again, my memories wiped overnight. It really stayed with me.”
Yenn spoke about exorcising the nightmare by writing How Much Sadness Can You Swallow?:
“I’m not a religious person but the concept of hell and penance has always fascinated me and the idea of hell not being fire and brimstone but some kind of endless, torturous loop was really scary to me. I had to write about it just to get it out of my system!”
The ever-present oscillating plucked synth throughout the song creates an ominous tension, hinting at something big looming, as the chorus opens out into a shimmering, textured expanse littered with faltering, electronic beats and underpinned by seismic, shuddering bass. The theatricality is appropriate for the lyrics as Yenn is often penning dark, visceral tales of fear, anxiety and nightmares:
“I find myself coming back to darker themes constantly. How Much Sadness Can You Swallow? is a song I’ve had with me for eight years but haven’t released until now so it’s taken on new meanings for me as I’ve gotten older. At its core, I think it’s a song about loss, self-blame and what we do or don’t do with those feelings.” She mused.
“I find myself coming back to darker themes constantly.” Says Yenn
Yenn’s whisper-like vocals dance across the verses before pushing through in the pre-chorus to something more throaty and urgent, “The King is dead, long live the King / And I know he wants to burn my skin / But how much sadness can you swallow before you get a stomach ache?” she asks.
Playing into the theme of nocturnal visions, the bridge of the song is especially dreamlike, stretching out luxuriously into a rushing, euphoric crescendo of sweeping harmonies, echoing bells and rumbling, distorted strings.
The artist cited contemporary horror and sci-fi cinema as an influence for her approach to the production and for taking a more cinematic approach to the forthcoming music video:
“I wanted the energy in the song to feel manic, somewhere between threat and celebration. Kind of like how you feel at the end of watching Midsommar (2019) or Annihilation (2018). We really want to have that same energy in the music video too. Allegorical horror and sci-fi are big influences for me so it will be nice to pay a tribute to that.”
For immediate release
Maya Yenn - How Much Sadness Can You Swallow?
Song credits:
Written by: Maya Yenn
Produced by: Maya Yenn and Michelangelo Dousis
Mixed by: Michelangelo Dousis
Mastered by: Oli Morgan, Abbey Road Studios