New Music:
“Wish Erase”
(Ft. Lala Lala & V.V. Lightbody)
~
words by tom johnson
“This was my first attempted collaboration via the internet,” says Martin Roark, of his brand new track “Wish Erase”, the first glimpse of his forthcoming new album under his Tomemitsu moniker. Streaming below right now – alongside the B-side which features Steady Holiday’s Dre Babinski – the new track is a collaboration between Roark, under his Tomemitsu moniker, LaLa Lala’s Lillie West, and Chicago songwriter VV Lightbody.
“I knew Lillie appreciated my music from when she used to live in LA,” Roark says. “I absolutely loved ‘The Lamb’ so I thought she’d be interested. I had a decent idea for the structure and Lillie had much better, and less direct, lyrics than I had originally demoed. Vivian McConnell (V.V. Lightbody) wrote flute parts for Wish Erase. She went above and beyond.”
Feeling much more like a considered next step than a giant leap into the unknown, the song is as subtle and colourful as we’ve come to expect from Roark, who has been releasing blissful gems for the best part of a decade now. A playful three minutes, “Wish Erase” sees Roark’s somewhat downbeat voice brought to life by the spirited instrumentation that flickers behind it, as well as those aforementioned contributions which quietly illuminate the whole piece.
“The song kind of encapsulates a bit of all the styles I’ve done with Tomemitsu while pushing to be more refined,” Roark continues.
“I was so happy to have flute, piano, and both male and female vocals to do a little nod to one of my favorite Brazilian songs: Tom Jobim and Elis Regina’s ‘Aguas de Marco. Although the lyrics don’t quite say it all, this song is about coming to grips with mistakes, becoming more aware as a person, and working to be better. In a way, it’s also about learning to reach out and ask for help by admitting wrong.”
The B-side to “Wish Erase” is an acoustic version of “Waiting For Your Love”, a new take on his 2019 valentines day single, and a beautiful duet with Dre of Steady Holiday. “The new and improved version of Waiting For Your Love is the version I should have written originally,” Roark says of the song. “The idea came while walking a winter beach just a month after having completed my first West Coast tour with Steady Holiday. The guitar part and melody swirled through my mind like the little waves of the low tide. I was really going for slowcore on the 2019 valentine’s day single with Dre and wanted to return to one of my favorite song’s I had written with a warmer approach to fit my album’s theme. I re-recorded everything, and am grateful to have a version with less tape hiss, and a sunnier disposition. Dre was terrific to work with again, and captured her vocals at home this time, due to the ongoing pandemic.”
Both of the new songs are streaming here from today. The new album, Sun, is set for release on April 9th, via Friends of Friends Records, and can be preordered now.
