#MayaYenn

[existentialmagazine]

Review: Maya Yenn’s newest alternative-pop single ‘Sour Grapes’ wistfully longs for childhood whilst declaring itself as an anthem for those lost in adulthood

Independant producer, singer, and songwriter Maya Yenn found her musical place within a glossy alt-pop sound, tinged with shades of contemporary R&B and storytelling that can’t help but feature darker themes against the backdrop of a upbeat instrumental-scape. Taking inspiration from the sound of artists like Glass Animals and Jungle, as well as alt-R&B innovators like James Blake and BANKS, Maya Yenn accumulates elements from the best and interweaves it into her own staple brand of dark-pop alike no other. Following on from the success of her first three singles that have accumulated over 65,000 streams on Spotify, Maya returns with her newest existential offering ‘Sour Grapes’ that’ll leave you dancing (and over-thinking) long after pressing play.

Crafting a lyrical journey that’s deeply thought-out, ‘Sour Grapes’ comes through your speakers and delves right under your skin to get at a burning existentialism and distaste for adulthood, all underpinned by a youthful nostalgia that yearns for the simple days of being young once again. From the dreams of a child that anticipated the freedom of being older to the irony that as you grow up you more frequently desire to go back and have no responsibilities, ‘Sour Grapes’ captures it all and sees Maya touching upon the realities of a world where you have to find your place whilst being served a severe cost-of-living crisis in the UK, an increasingly digital emphasis and impending climate disaster. Completely overwhelmed, her lyricism spills with a smothering sense of anxiety and unhappiness, ‘don’t think that I can take it if this is all that there is.’ Feeling let down by the magical freedoms imagined in childhood, ‘Sour Grapes’ feels like running into a brick wall and facing the truth, no matter how cold, hard and unexpected it feels: ‘Growing up left a bad taste in my mouth.’ Highly resonant lines like ‘supposed to be on top now, supposed to have it all figured out now’ seep with fear, feeding into the unrealistic expectations from society to know what you’re doing and be paving out a successful career in your 20s, as well as a self-awareness that life takes a little more work than Maya ever bargained for. Frankly surrounded by disaster and the sense of being thrown in the deep end, ‘Sour Grapes’ captures it all without any kind of watering down, marking itself as an anthem for a generation filled with a future of uncertainty and constantly on the edge of running from it all: ‘maybe I’ll move to a new place, and all my problems will go away.’

When explaining the meaning behind the song, Yenn elaborated that, “It’s about a lot of things to me but on a very personal level, ‘Sour Grapes’ is an attempt to make peace with adult life not being all it’s cracked up to be. I’m definitely making fun of myself a little bit in the song for being a kind of a brat but also earnestly frustrated with how hard being an adult often is.”

As it wields harsh realities between its nearing three minute bookends, ‘Sour Grapes’ playfully contrasts its heavy message with a more hopeful, childlike soundscape melding fun with a dark-pop blur around the edges. Even the opening alone feels almost theatrical, commencing with the click of a loading cassette tape and a vibrant electric guitar quickly cut short by a video game gun shaking you out of your daydreams and into reality. Pounding beats and 8-bit-sounding bass find their home in the verses, picked up by colourful pops of sound that errs between moody in its lower tones whilst seriously catchy in how it pulsates. Capturing an auditory playground filled with samples from everyday objects slotted throughout makes ‘Sour Grapes’ all the more down-to-earth, utilising an array of Gameboy-style pings, juvenile sounding mouth pops, slurping drinks and zippers sliding that together truly hone in a soundscape built up to be not just a song but an experience that takes you back to your youth. The selected sounds are all distinctly older too, reminiscing on an age that wasn’t consumed by social media and a need to constantly be online, feeling almost lost in the scope of the modern world. As the chorus thrives with an increased volume, more dominant instrumentals and bright sound additions, ‘Sour Grapes’ wonderfully hooks you on its distinctive vibe and retro emphasis. As Maya delivers a witty dialogue of her stresses and woes, her vocals edge between spoken-sung and an absolutely radiant soaring range, making the track feel all the more personable and real. The final chorus adds trumpets and horns to the already eccentric soundscape, with Maya championing an entire world of sound and commandeering it to be her own.

Check out ‘Sour Grapes’ for yourself here to enjoy the true scope of Maya’s lyricism and her creative, utterly addictive sound!

Written by: Tatiana Whybrow

Photo Credits: Unknown

// This coverage was created via Musosoup, #SustainableCurator

[musicarenagh]

Have A Taste Of Maya Yenn's 'Sour Grapes' Maya Yenn’s “Sour Grapes" is a ridiculously catchy song that expresses the frustrations of growing up. It is full of warm nostalgia, bleeps and bloops from half-remembered video games, and R&B-inspired rhythms. The song begins with the warping click of a filling cassette tape as Yenn calmly hums along to a hazy lo-fi guitar. The heady scene is abruptly broken by a video game gun that sounds like an alarm clock at six in the morning. We are then thrust directly into the track, which is accompanied by 8-bit bass, insistent vocals, and defiant beats with hip-hop influences. A distinct lyrics "Supposed to be on top now / Supposed to have it all figured out now," boons the realities of life, getting to know you missed your beautiful childhood because you desperately wanted to grow up. “Sour Grapes” is a characterful take on the frustrations and disappointments of adulthood; full of nostalgic warmth, video game bleeps and bloops and R&B-tinged beats, it's the perfect cocktail of freshly-squeezed pop for when adulthood just isn’t sweet enough. Remember when you were young and you desperately wanted to grow up and have it all, have all the freedom in the world, you later grow up and it’s the complete opposite of what you thought it would be ��� sour grapes. “‘Sour Grapes’ is basically about the irony of being a kid and looking forward to all the freedom you’re going to have as an adult and then you get there and feel like you actually had it better as a kid.” Yenn explains. Enjoy Sour Grapes below   Follow Maya Yenn on Facebook Twitter Spotify Soundcloud Bandcamp Youtube Instagram Tiktok

[keepwalkingmusic]

Review: Maya Yenn - How Much Sadness Can You Swallow?

Review: New music from Maya Yenn (@MayaYenn) is a must-hear, stream 'How Much Sadness Can You Swallow?' here

After the success of my debut single, I’m very excited to release my follow up track, ‘How Much Sadness Can You Swallow?’ out now (released 13/08/21). Words by S. Ben Ali As of late, we can’t get enough of Maya Yenn’s recent releases (check out her Spotify)… and the promising artist’s latest is no different. Titled ‘How Much Sadness Can You Swallow?’, the unique sounding beat makers bring…

[musicarenagh]

Maya Yenn Unveils New Single 'Better Luck Next Time'

Maya Yenn Unveils New Single ‘Better Luck Next Time’

Maya Yenn is a singer, songwriter, and independent producer from the United Kingdom. The distinctive sound that she creates sets delicate, gossamer vocals at the forefront of a dark alternative-pop background. https://soundcloud.com/mayayenn Her music, which is typically tinged with elements of modern R&B, is known for including gloomy lyrics that are centred on topics like anxiety and…

[musicarenagh]

Know More About Maya Yenn And Her Latest Release

Know More About Maya Yenn And Her Latest Release

Maya Yenn is a singer-songwriter-producer located in the United Kingdom. Her haunting first album was a huge hit, and now she’s back with a sultry new album of glitchy electropop, this time with a darker subject matter. https://soundcloud.com/mayayenn What follows is an exclusive interview with Maya in which she divulges all the details regarding her most recent work ‘How Much Sadness You Can…