Blake Harley - Dance in the Dungeon
Photo Credit: Hannah Brandes
“Rave, darkness, mystery, hypnotize, euphoria.” Blake Harley chooses her words carefully when describing her song “Dance in the Dungeon.” After re-watching The Matrix, Harley took a club scene in the film and captured the feeling in what she calls a “goth party hymn.”
Though Harley doesn’t have a fixed songwriting process, she writes lyrics to “make people feel something.” At the same time, she says, “If you don’t write a song that’s truthful to you, there’s really no point.” Harley often tries to “find a common ground with people,” when writing lyrics. She explains, “I love that during concerts–to sing words that make people dream and make people feel understood in their weirdness.”
“Dance in the Dungeon,” is on Harley’s debut EP Happy Tears. On the nine songs, she says, “They all connect. It’s all about longing. It’s all about nostalgia. It’s all about melancholy. But also in finding joy and euphoria in these feelings. I find emotions most interesting when they have several layers. That’s really what it’s about,” she says. “There’s something childish about it as well, which I also tried to reflect in the title.”
Watch as the darkwave artist Blake Harley breaks down “Dance in the Dungeon.” Happy Tears is out now on Duchess Box records.
Happy Tears is out now. Follow Blake Harley on Instagram.
Salt Lake City multi-instrumentalist Anthony Pena returns to his roots with his debut album 4. A Prince-dedicated blend of R&B, soul, and indie pop, the record was written, produced, engineered, and mixed by Pena himself. His almost-whispered vocals dissolve into the instrumentation, becoming just another thread in the fabric of each song. We sat down with Pena to talk about commitment, influences, and stream-of-consciousness writing.