Northampton’s Katie Malco will be releasing her debut album Failures on June 5, and today she has shared a new track from the record called “Brooklyn”. Talking about the song, the singer says:
“‘Brooklyn’ is about a friend of mine that moved to start a new life in New York,” Malco explains. “We’ve been friends for years and I’ve always felt protective of her. I went to New York for the first time to see her, having hardly even left the UK before, so it felt like a massive significant trip for me. It was her birthday and we had a big night to celebrate. On the last night we had a heart to heart where I tried to persuade her to come home – at this point she was hardly making enough money to live. She said she wouldn’t stay forever, to appease me, but that she was going to give it her best go. It wasn’t until later that I realised I wasn’t asking her to come home because I was worried she wasn’t going to survive – she always does – I was asking her to come home because I needed her.”
Whereas previous single “Animal” was an excoriating self-examination, “Brooklyn” is a much more tender look at a very personal aspect of life. A gorgeous portrayal of close friendship at a distance, Malco takes us on the turbulent ride through her evolving feelings about her friend’s move across the ocean. At first quiet and awed by the life in a new city that her friend is living, “Brooklyn” later explodes into a frustrated plea for them to return, a guttural and affecting moment that speaks to the awful absence that we feel when we can’t be close to the people we rely upon. However, Malco masters her feelings for the solemn but accepting finale, again displaying the strength of her affection for her best friend.
The story of “Brooklyn” is made even deeper with the video, which is a patchwork of clips from when Malco visited her friend in NYC, intercut with them having lively conversations over FaceTime. Combined with the song, we get a true sense of the love they share – and why it pains Malco so much that they’re so far apart.
Katie Malco’s debut album Failures is out June 5 on 6131 Records. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
