The mythology of the mermaid is one that swims just below the surface of the conscious mind, floating there like a bubble of air that almost rises to the top, only to sink back below. A K U A is one of those artists that is floating just at the breaking point between sky and sea, she hasn’t yet fully emerged, but the momentum she’s building is coming to a crest.
Today, Pigeons & Planes is premiering the video for “Gravity” her first single—a whirl of heady vocals and fronds of electronic sound.
Try pronouncing her name like this: a-koo-ah, like a seagull call or the lap of a wave on the sand. This video marks a major turning point for the Montreal-based singer and songwriter, as it’s the first track released from her forthcoming EP One’s Company that will be out this June.
Debuting the song in video form makes sense considering the filmmaker is her brother Kofi Carson—creativity clearly drives both of them. The visuals are an exploration of the trouble that befalls a wild mermaid when a fisherman won’t give up the search to hunt her down, both terrible and beautiful, the story unfolds in perfect time with the song.
Beginning all smooth, a spun-out swim session through untroubled waters, the interruption and the violence come harsh and heavy all at once, in sync with the turbulent turn in the music, and then the track calms back down through a graceful outro.
It’s a difficult to balance dipping into the realm of mythology as a brand new artist, it’s hard to maintain a graceful edge between the reworked stories of the past and your own, personal narrative. A K U A manages this task with ease, maintaining her identity, along with some mystery, in the compelling story that unfolds in the video.
She merges the bedrock of electronic production with an outgrowth of R&B flavored vocal stylings that settle into your ears and linger there like sand and salt. Look for One’s Company, which was co-produced by Twin Shadow‘s Andy Bauer, out on June 4.
