Lebanese outfit sandmoon offers an original take on indie folk-pop, infusing it with subtle Middle-Eastern intonations and melancholy, and a certain timelessness. Singer-songwriter Sandra Arslanian, who initiated the project, was born in Lebanon, raised in Belgium and has Armenian roots – a contrasted blend that is perceptible in the music.
They released their first album Home in 2014, an EP #IntheEnd in 2016 and in 2018, a 3-song EP Beirut-Berlin Session produced by Victor Van Vugt (Nick Cave, PJ Harvey…). In 2016, sandmoon also wrote the original soundtrack to Lebanese director, Philippe Aractingi’s feature film Listen, which received the Award for Best Soundtrack at the Lebanese Movie Awards 2017.
Sandmoon will be releasing their second album, Put a Gun/Commotion produced by Fadi Tabbal, later this year. In anticipation of an impending release, they are are sharing a new single called “Empty” on April 17th along with an accompanying video, which we are excited to share today on Glide. Lyrically, the song is an ode to a lost love and its consequences that is both melancholy and uplifting. Set to a moody mid-tempo groove with a dark beat, subtle yet striking guitar, and a wave of synth, the song is a dreamy work of pop meets indie rock pulled off with a smooth coolness. The accompanying video shot by Cesar Award-winning Paris-based director Hany Tamba (After Shave), presents a series of slow-moving, powerful visuals in haunting black and white while the band performing on a computer screen, bringing to mind our current age of artists forced to live stream due to being stuck in quarantine.
Sandra Arslanian says, “’Empty’ is about realizing how wrong some of your life choices have been and how liberating it is when you let go of them. The emptiness that ensues is an opportunity to care and dare again.”
Adds Tamba: “What I like about ‘Empty’ is that it is both melancholic and uplifting. Sandra’s hauntingly beautiful and mellow vocals flow graciously through to the end. There’s something very fluid and organic about ‘Empty,’ a song about the void left after an emotional break-up. There’s a sweet sadness to it, but also optimism.”
WATCH:
