Northern Rivers singer-songwriter Stephanie Cherote has released a sensually pensive new single, ‘Flightless Crow’, exploring the value of a woman in the eyes of a man.
Released today (March 18), the artist was frank about the song’s thematic direction, saying: “As females, we learn to pre-empt and appease misguided male conduct, which often lands us in a situation where we have to explain ourselves, prove ourselves, validate our worth beyond the extent of our appeal to men.”
Elaborating on the themes and origins of ‘Flightless Crow’, Cherote said: “[It] was written as I was pulling myself apart like an odd-sock box, questioning who I was without the pairing or the clutch of another. It was that weird moment of seeing myself again, free of being identified as someone’s ‘lady’ or someone’s ‘other’.
“The song climbs through a few dissonant chord changes and doesn’t really land anywhere chorus-like or ‘comfortable’ except for a couple of dashes back to the lyrical line ‘Who am I‘.”
Beginning in a stunning film noir-style, the single’s official music video – directed and produced by Ilsa Wynne-Hoelscher Kidd – plays out with gentle shots of Cherote sensually interacting with her love interest. A gentle acoustic guitar plays as Cherote’s intricate lyrics ask: “Am I just another wasted woman / measured by the grip of your hand?“, with rich orchestrations adding depth to transitional colour images of the artist in meadows and among trees, dwelling on her thoughts.
Watch it below:
On the video, Cherote added: “I wanted the music film to capture the quietly imprisoned trance-state that a woman is often in when she is existing in the shadows or in the periphery of a man’s awareness.
“The tired and degraded woman – unseen beyond her physical stamp in the dynamic. It’s an infuriating existence, it breeds an internal rage.”
The new single is the fourth from the indie artist, lifted from her forthcoming debut album, ‘Some Holy Longing’, set for release on Friday April 1 independently. Find the full tracklist below.
Prior to ‘Flightless Crow’, Cherote released singles the colourful ‘What Becomes Of The Things I’ve Seen?’, album opener ‘Summer Love’ and her most recent offering, ‘Faces’.
Stephanie Cherote’s ‘Some Holy Longing’ tracklist is:
1. ‘Summer Love’
2. ‘What Becomes Of The Things I’ve Seen?’
3. ‘Faces’
4. ‘The Hours’
5. ‘TO Be True’
6. ‘You Who Knew’
7. ‘All Because Of You’
8. ‘You Forever Elude Me’
9. ‘Crazy Man’
10. ‘Flightless Crow’
11. ‘Me and my Longing’