It’s still two months until Fenne Lily releases her new album BREACH, but she’s sharing plenty of new material ahead of time. The newest is called “Berlin”, and she introduces it by saying:
“When I was 21 I spent a month alone in Berlin. While I was there, I recorded everything I did as a voice note or in a sketchbook, even if it was boring. On the plane ride home, my phone packed up and I lost all my song ideas from my trip. Initially, it felt as though I’d lost a part of my brain, but gradually pieces started to come back to me. To help the remembering process, I tried to picture all the things that surrounded me during my time alone in Berlin. The more I pictured these mundane objects, the more lost ideas I could remember. This song was one of these ideas.”
“Berlin” is minimal in words, but Lily only needs a few to paint a whole picture – and it helps that her singing is backed by Lucy Dacus and Ali Chant. We feel as if we’re walking in step with her as she strides through the German capital, the sun on our faces during the day, bustle in our ears at night. She feels overwhelmed by the sheer volume of people, places and history, but moreover feels independent – “it’s not hard to be alone anymore.”
The video was created by Henry Dunbar, and Fenne Lily says about it: “When it came to deciding on a video for it, I’d recently had a dream about an illustrated man eating his own brain for breakfast and, on the same day, was introduced to Henry’s animated short film ‘Pollock’. His work and my dream were impossible to ignore in their similarities and so this video was born. It reflects both the comfort and claustrophobia of the everyday, and how company can be found in everything when you’re left with only yourself and an alien place. The umbrella made me cry – I kind of hope it helps you do the same.”
Fenne Lily’s new album BREACH is out on September 18 via Dead Oceans. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
