An undulating ode to the shifting of time, memory and the world around us, Melbourne singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Emily Victoria returns today with a sublime new dream pop-laced single Memorise, also accompanied by an exquisitely filmed and edited photobook-inspired music video.
Expansive, dreamy and magnetically heartfelt, Memorise finds Emily drawing inspiration from a range of specific artists and songs, including Massive Attack’s Unfinished Sympathy, Acopia’s Holding On, Purient’s WBWU, and City Moon’s Love Spirals Downwards. A lush dreamy pop universe steeped with moments of soft melodics, warm fuzz and angelic synths, the journey to the ultimate release of Memorise was also deeply shaped by the impact of time on memories, reflected by the ever-changing seasons themselves, as Emily elaborates, “Memorise is about time passing and the seasons changing. As we move forward , memories are distant…how consistent are visions of an event that occurred many years ago? What images are we reflecting on? And it’s also about nature following a cyclic progression. My intention was to compose a song that resembled a cycle structurally. There are no defined sections, the verse unfolds into the chorus and then the chorus concludes sooner than anticipated and the beginning of the idea surfaces again (round and round). Like a clock. Every time the cycle recommences , new paths are explored thus new lyrics, instrumental layers and additions surface. Like memories, culminating in new layers of thought, connections made, ideas appear.”
Produced by Nao Anzai and Lewis Moody and Gareth Thomson (vocal production) and mastering by Seb Moomin, with additional instrumentation provided by Anthony Farrugia, Jacob Long, Lewis Moody and Sam Clarke, Memorise also vividly comes to life via its accompanying music video. Directed by Brendan Schoenmaker alongside a stellar team, the clip captures the visualisation of memory itself, with inspiration taken from photobooks as well as the work of Alexandra Savior and films A Ghost Story and Bones. From filming at 5am on beaches earlier this year to careful colour consideration, the clip seamlessly links to Emily’s sharp lyricism and the track’s overarching dream-like state, as Brendan explains, “The video explores the haunting ability of memories as well as its fleeting and corruptible nature. The concept is built off the idea that memory is constantly being rewritten with every recall leaving us with the gist of something faded.” Offering further insight, Emily notes, “In the clip, an individual visits some of their memories – images of them in a red dress (a lively colour resembling life), wandering lonely landscapes. The occasional appearance of a mannequin blurs the lines between individual and mannequin.”
Marking Emily’s second release following her most recent single Humming Heart, which has been streamed over 300,000 times, went to #1 in Latvia and was selected as Brag Media’s feature video of the week upon release earlier this year, Memorise is a matured and exceedingly polished addition to the Emily Victoria burgeoning repertoire. An accomplished vocalist, cellist, guitarist and pianist, Emily’s creative pursuits to date has seen her awarded an AMRAP Women In Music mentorship, currently mentoring under Chrissie Vincent, as well as multiple projects and performances in her wake since 2013, including performing with her high school band My Tree Origin launching an experimental jazz quartet, releasing an EP The Creature You Are in 2018, and harnessing her dream pop prowess as of 2020 under the moniker Emily Victoria. From studying classical cello in her youth to now spreading her creative wings further than ever, Memorise is a delectable continuation as much as it has been a pivotal juncture to future endeavours, as Emily concludes, “I am so in love with this song. From writing the lyrics on Chapel Street a few years ago to shooting the video clip at 5am at Emerald Beach NSW earlier this year, Memorise has taught me so much and taken me on a journey. There has been so much growth.”
Memorise is out now.
