BREY - BREAKUP SONG FEAT MNYS & FRENCH HORN REBELLION

Break-ups are complicated. They dredge up all kind of emotions. There's a certain euphoria about the unlimited possibilities, which mingles with an omnipresent ache, combining to form a bittersweet vinaigrette of longing, regret, excitement, and self-awareness.

Up-and-coming producer/singer-songwriter Brey captures these nuanced emotions and sensations over a bedrock of minimalist beats and shining beats on "Breakup Song," featuring contributions from MNYS and French Horn Rebellion.

BREY - BREAKUP SONG FEAT MNYS & FRENCH HORN REBELLION

Most break-up songs are either in the "you done my wrong," mode of bitter anger, or the "get your squad, get drunk tonight" pop club banger. "Breakup Song" shows a surprising level of self-awareness and introspection, without becoming navelgazing. Brey seems to be breaking things off, following the axiom of doctors and surgeons, Primum Non Nocere, "do no harm." Perhaps if more people followed these principles, there would be less breakup songs from the aforementioned categories.

Brey is sonically aligned with some of the last few years' avant-garde r&b, most notably the plasticine soul of the under-appreciated Autre Ne Neut. Like Autre, "Breakup Song" seems beamed in from some astral dimension at the centre of time & space. Here, Brey contemplates life & love, showcasing a wisdom beyond their tender years.

Brey is a precocious talent and one to watch, for sure. We Are: The Guard will be watching (and listening.)

J. Simpson occupies the intersection between criticism, creativity, and academia. Based out of Portland, Or., he is the author of Forestpunk, an online journal/brand studying the traces of horror, supernatural, and the occult through music, fashion and culture. He plays in the dreamfolk band Meta-Pinnacle with his partner Lily H. Valentine, with whom he also co-founded Bitstar Productions, a visual arts collective focused on elevating Pop Culture to High Art.