Before questioning the inclusion of an alt-pop act on our streams, ask yourself this - if an act is producing heavy-themed tracks with hard-hitting subject manner - that would never get picked up by mainstream sources - then surely it's worth the discussion, right? Especially when that band features a musician we've been covering since our earliest iteration!
That's the case with today's premiere - Meet solo act Heterochromia - who likens herself to fellow emo musicians such as Phoebe Bridges, Halsey and The 1975 - all known for producing deeply personal (and at times turbulent) music that mainstream radio and media won't touch because it 'trigger warning' touches on suicidal ideology.
Today we're giving alt-pop a chance to be heard with the premiere of 'Kicking' (released on DSP tomorrow) - a vulnerable peep into the lives of two friends, who were prepared to throw it all away; until they found refuge in each other's company.
If you or anyone you know needs help with their own mental well-being call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636 or find your closest Suicide Prevention/Crisis Support Organisation on Google…
Heterochromia (the brainchild of BreeVane) teams up with a scene fav for this deeply personal track which finds the pair welling up as they confess their deepest, darkest fears to each other. Following the recent release of Belle Haven's moody new single, 'I Can't Find The Words', which found frontman David De La Hoz venturing away from his screams in favour of a more melodic, emotive direction, we can get a better understanding of his range and abilities as he sings back and forth in this hauntingly balladesque track, which tells the story of two friends battling their own demons while trying to fight each others'.
When asked about being this vulnerable so early into their career, Bree openly shares:
"I’m absolutely shitting it. This is pretty much the most overtly open I’ve ever been in a musical format. I’m normally protected by a comforting blanket of sarcasm and dark humour that’s nowhere to be found in 'Kicking'. But I don’t think I really had a choice."
"I wrote this song at a time when I was just kind of scared to exist and scared to lose this person in my life who really understood my head because, unfortunately, theirs was just as fucked up. Kicking is supposed to sit comfortably in the playlist you put on when you’re trying to have a good cry."
Taking a real-life friendship and shituation like this and putting it on a platform so openly for others to listen to and relate to (not to mention finding solace in 'being seen') is a daunting process to take in, but doing it with the person behind the real-life story is an extraordinary next level approach.
When quizzed about how that initial conversation to include De La Hoz in the track went down, Bree explains it all came 'pretty naturally',
"The song wasn’t initially written with a feature in mind. But David and I had floated the idea of doing something together and once I suggested it, it just immediately fit. It just sounds like he was always supposed to be on the song. Like it’d sound empty without him."
In need of a good cry, or just want to drift away listening to a Romeo & Juliette-esque theme song written in 2023? Give it a spin below!
Follow Heterochromia on socials via LinkTree
Stream 'Kicking' here
