Track: New Zealand’s magnificent Fazerdaze makes a welcome return after 5 years with the melodic anthem ‘Come Apart’, and the world is a better place.

It’s been five long years since Fazerdaze released the brilliant debut album ‘Morningside’ through the legendary Flying Nun Records – an album that still resonates after so long, and which still has a permanent place on my turntable (read my review here). The result of such a blinding debut, however, took its toll: something that burns so bright lasted half as long: and Amelia Murray – the genius singer, songwriter, multi instrumentalist and producer behind Fazerdaze – was overwhelmed. A combination of unhealthy personal relationships, feelings of unworthiness regarding her burgeoning success and general mental exhaustion soon began to manifest in her musical output; at a time when she should have been deep in the throes of writing her follow up project, Fazerdaze found she couldn’t finish a single song. Thankfully, these challenges have been overcome and Fazerdaze is back. Murray says:

I lost a lot of confidence during that time and I gradually just eroded. Eventually, I had to surrender to the truth of the toxic situations I was finding myself in, both professionally and personally. No longer being stoic and strong was the best thing I ever did for myself. Giving up on the people and things that weren’t working in my life was this big emotional release. I could finally put down this weight I was carrying. Ever since then, things have been flowing in my life again. I can hear my intuition, write songs and be creative again; I signed a record deal, I moved into my own place. It’s like the floodgates opened for good stuff coming back into my life.

The work of Murray is beautiful and raw: songs filled with indelible melodies and anthemic choruses yet fragile and delicate. ‘Come Apart’ feels like a natural transition: a harder edge has developed, with a resonance that is a little more world weary and worn, and yet still bubbling with a fresh vitality. Fazerdaze has a sound that gathers together Murray’s antipodean roots, reaching back to the Dunedin sound, adopts the rough hewn qualities of bands like The Jesus and Mary Chain, mixing in elements of Nirvana and The Pixies, and in the process brewing something quite unique and special.

Murray says of the track:

‘Come Apart’ is an angsty surrender to growing apart from people in my life. I wrote this at a time when I wasn’t accepting that some of my closest relationships were just not working. I was contorting myself to fit others, doing everything I could to keep the relationships going instead of allowing them to be what they were; ending, done. I believe this song was a way for my subconscious to shout at me to surrender and to allow things in my life to come to an end.

The lyrics are raw and personal, surfing the crest of the restless instrumentation below:

I saw nothing in your eyes when you looked at me
I’ve known this for a while you and me it aint working
So take a minute, admit it, lets commit to it
It’s a decision and we can get used to it

This is a beautiful and elegant return for Fazerdaze, and it is so good to have her back:

‘Come Apart’ can be downloaded and streamed here and through the link below:

Fazerdaze will be playing at Australia’s Splendour in the Grass Festival this Friday 22 July at 1:25pm at the GW Mclennan Tent – which also marks her first live show in three years. Fazerdaze has also signed to section1 – the new label established by Partisan Records.

Here, as a reminder of the past, is a link to the brilliant ‘Morningside’:

Feature Photograph: Joey Clough