Lingering thoughts and memories can often become inescapable, where the mind is overwhelmed with feelings of regret, guilt, and the weight of past actions. Haunted by our own thoughts such ruminations can be so deeply embedded in the human psyche replaying moments of what was said, what was done, and what could have been.
New Zealand Dark Pop outfit Robots In Love’s latest evocative single “Gossip in Your Head” is a poignant reflection on how internalized feelings can affect our mental and emotional well-being, keeping us awake at night and shaping our interactions with the world around us.
At the helm of Robots In Love is the prodigious Australian talent Elenor Rayner. Having transitioned from Melbourne to Ōtepoti (Dunedin), New Zealand, Elenor transformed this project into her primary creative outlet in 2017. She’s currently flanked by a stellar ensemble: drummer and electronic maestro Alex Burchell, guitarist extraordinaire Pierre Higbee, and the seasoned bass rhythms of Tony Lumsden.
Diving into the genesis of “Gossip in Your Head,” Elenor shares:
“This year, friends The Sound Key played me some of their music and I was particularly enthralled by a song called ‘Gossip in Your Head’, and so it was recorded in the Robots In Love studio with Pierre Higbee on guitars and Alex Burchell on drums. Alex then produced a remix which was even more atmospheric than the original recording, emphasising the haunting vocal harmonies. The depth of emotion in the remix captivated everyone who heard it, and so it became the A-side of the single release: a masterpiece of beautiful dark pop.”
“Gossip in Your Head” is an aural reverie with celestial vocal harmonies that dance amidst melancholic beats. The percussion, reminiscent of Massive Attack’s pulsating dark electro canvas, is coupled with melancholic darkwave guitar strains, which altogether craft a sound that’s both haunting and captivating. It’s as if the track offers a floating sanctuary, a place of solace after weathering a mental tempest.
Listen below:
Elenor Rayner has been a force to reckon with. She began playing the Australian pub circuit as a bassist when she was just 14 before switching to producing music on an Atari computer, “which opened up a universe of creating sounds and moulding them into rhythms and melodies until they evoke the exact feeling I need.”
Her prolific career boasts hundreds of tracks, over 50 CD releases, and countless global performances with iconic bands like Soulscraper, Sobriquet alias Sobriquet Nation, Snog, and The Crystalline Effect. After relocating to New Zealand around 2015, she embraced the Robots In Love identity in 2017.
Today marks the day ‘Gossip in Your Head’ by Robots In Love graces the digital realm via Bandcamp. Stay tuned as it rolls out across other major digital platforms, depending on where the hands of your clock point.
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