California singer-songwriter Mae Powell won hearts with her lovably incendiary single “Fuck I.C.E.” earlier this year, and this week she has revealed plans for her debut album: it’s called Both Ways Brighter and comes out through Park The Van on August 20. She’s also shared a new song called “Weird Dreams”, saying:
“I had such a weird dream and it brought up all of these emotions regarding my partner at the time and my current state of mental health. I sat down on a chair in a patch of sunlight in my living room and this song just flowed out of me in one session. It felt good to get it out, and now I know I’m not the only one with weird dreams.”
Powell easily introduces us to her dream world with a slightly bossa-nova sound underscored by wobbly marimba tones and even some canned cinema strings. Vocally, she sounds laid back throughout, even as she describes waking up from a fever dream in tears. From there, she sashays into strange memories of dreams, sweeping us along with her into multiple plane crashes, smoking weed in bed with THEESatisfaction, and getting snakes tattooed on her neck. Her tone remains consistently breezy even as she describes these oddities – which only adds to the surreality of it all.
You can watch the video for “Weird Dreams” below, or listen to it on streaming platforms.
Mae Powell’s debut album Both Ways Brighter arrives on August 20 via Park The Van (pre-order on Bandcamp). You can follow her on Instagram.
