Video Premiere: Kaela Sinclair "I Cry Too"
We are excited to announce the premiere of Kaela Sinclairs new music video, "I Cry Too." You may know her from the shoegaze ambient pop band, M83, and we can't get enough of her new solo project. Watch the video first here, and read on to find out about how M83 has shaped her sound, what influenced the animation behind her video, and what the song means to her. Also be sure to lookout for her SXSW takeover this Monday on our Instagram story!
The lyrics to “I Cry Too” are beautifully heart wrenching; what does the song mean to you?
The song cycles through different relationships and focuses on empathy and the beauty of sharing pain with another human. When I started writing the song I imagined a parent and child - the child is experiencing pain (maybe a stubbed toe or a broken toy) and the parent makes it feel okay and less scary by saying “I Cry Too.” That’s what I imagined in the first verse. But when I came around to the second verse it shifted to a romantic relationship, a couple in their mid-twenties. I imagined a moment when the girl (and yeah, this is drawing from my own experiences) is sort of breaking down and feeling a flood of desperation. She feels alone…why am I always crying? Why am I always sad and everyone else seems so strong? Her partner says “I cry too” and she’s no longer alone or broken…she’s normal and human and understood. It’s about how we can provide such comfort to others by being open about our own hurts, by being vulnerable.
Can you tell us a little bit about what inspired the animation for your music video?
I’d been imagining the video with real people for awhile but it kept feeling too sad. I know, the song is literally about crying. Once I realized I wanted the video to be animated it became much more uplifting, and I wrote a new story for the song. There’s a young girl who lives on a planet that is always night, in a forest, with moonlight from her Moon mother guiding her. She gets older, falls in love with a forest boy, they fight a monster, things go bad…but it comes back around to this nurturing presence that has been with her from the beginning who feels her pain and heals with her tears. The animation was all done by hand by Felix Lenz, an animator and artist in Austin, TX. It was so fun seeing him bring the idea to life.
You have a uniquely eclectic sound, who are your influences?
When I was a teenager I was listening to a lot of Bjork, Rufus Wainwright, Regina Spektor, Feist, and Death Cab for Cutie. Also I grew up playing classical piano and studied it in college, so I take a lot of musical inspiration from my favorite composers, Debussy and Chopin. I have a ton of other influences and music I adore, but I never try to sound like anything…I want to just sound like me.
How long have you been working on your upcoming project?
I’ve been putting out songs and EP’s lately, and I have more to release in the next couple of months, but I’ve also been writing a ton of songs that I think will end up being my second full-length album. The timeline for working on music can be all over the map sometimes. I wrote I Cry Too several months ago, but I’m releasing a song next month that I wrote two years ago. Every song has a journey.
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What was it like having to jump into the fast-track of M83’s 2016 tour?
It was such a whirlwind. I was asked to join the band in February of 2016, and two weeks later was in rehearsals, which went straight into a tour that lasted most of the year. It was a completely life-changing experience. I went to 35+ countries that I’d never been to, got used to sleeping in a bunk in a tour bus, experienced the daily adventure of waking up in a new place and trying to find showers and catering, explored festivals and met a lot of cool and interesting people. We played the main stage at Coachella in the first couple weeks of the tour…my head was spinning. But I mean, I live for that stuff, that pressure and excitement.
What kind of future can we expect from your relationship with M83? Are you planning on recording with them and continuing to tour or will your main focus be your solo projects?
It’s a really special relationship, and I’m so grateful that Anthony (who is M83, essentially) has invited me into his world. I am currently involved in recording with M83, and when the time comes for another tour I’ll be a part of that as well. Luckily, Anthony is really supportive of me pursuing my own artistic vision at the same time. For both of us, the music comes first, and I think he knows that the more I express and develop myself as an artist, the more I can bring to the table as part of M83.
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How does it feel to be back performing in TX at SXSW?
I always love playing in TX. I went to college there and lived in a very musically-bursting small town so I’m really excited to be playing SXSW this year. Texas has a lot of great music lovers and supportive fans.
Do you feel that working with m83 has influenced or changed your solo sound at all?
It’s been a huge influence on me, yes. I’ve spent so much time with the music, the early albums, and obviously the songs we played live every night…it’s become a big part of me. I’m so drawn to the feeling of filling a space with emotion…the cinematic, dramatic, ethereal intensity is like a seed that has been growing in me since I was a young girl, and is being given such life by existing in the same atmosphere as all of Anthony’s music. I admire everything about his writing and production. I’ve also learned so much from Joe, Jordan, and Loïc, the other members of the band. They’re like brothers now to me, and creative forces themselves.
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Do you write your own music and lyrics?
Yes I write the music and lyrics, pretty much always alone. It’s such a personal, intimate thing and I like to feel completely free to play and sing without anyone listening.
Which comes first, the melody or the lyrics?
Both ways, I like to switch it up. Sometimes I start with a few lines of lyrics, and sometimes I start with an idea on piano or a cool sound on a synth.
When can we expect to hear more of you?
I’ll be putting out another single in about a month, playing more shows, and appearing on a collaboration or two coming up! And I’m always writing, so hopefully a second full-length album is in my near future.
You can keep in touch on Instagram and Twitter @kaelasinclair, and you can find my music on Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, and anywhere else you buy or stream music.