New York born, Sydney-bred dark-pop artist, Valencia James, is making music for those in need. With a catalogue of music inspired by real life events, Valencia is on a mission, song by song, to give listeners something real, something organic, and something true.
Her latest single, “All The Waves”, was written amidst the chaos of 2020 and exemplifies just how Valencia is accomplishing her mission.
Right off the bat, Valencia’s voice exudes confidence and hope. There is no missing the strength and power behind her lyrics, especially against the strong piano backdrop. As the song continues, an even-tempo percussion sneaks in and then flows into a quicker-paced beat that features electronic elements to add extra depth. Throughout the song, Valencia’s vocal prowess is maintained, even as she gets vulnerable in one of her darkest times. Her voice perfectly matches the beautifully mixed instrumental, and then finally builds to a triumphant crescendo within the final minute, giving us a glimpse of hope on the horizon.
“All the waves keep on crashing / They won’t take us down.”
The song speaks to how we can be knocked down in life by our struggles, but there is still so much love for us and life ahead of us, so dark times can bring out the best in us. Even when it seems like one bad thing happens after another, like a succession of waves trying to knock us down, we can still fight against it all and hold our heads high, standing against the waves. Valencia notes that this song was inspired by a long, hard season she was going through up until right before she released this song and then all of the other events in 2020. She also confides that “It’s my way of comparing my fear of the waves to how I feel about the situations in my life and the hits that I’ve taken being likened to a succession of waves breaking over me.”
“All The Waves” was co-written and produced by Harrison Wood and Peter James. It was mixed by Ben Whincop then mastered by Bruno Gruel. It captures Valencia’s signature dark and edgy voice aligned with new passion and hope.
2020 has been difficult for us all, that is without a doubt. But it is made a little bit brighter by artists, like Valencia, who turn their vulnerability and pain into something beautiful to share with us. “All The Waves” is what perseverance sounds like. It is a welcomed warmth amongst the chaos.
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