The voice of Sara Kendall is a portal to her soul.
Late last year, we premiered her emotive electronic-pop single “I’ll Be Your Skin”, written from her teenage perspective and experience of her late father’s battle with cancer. Today, she draws from within once again in the orchestral “Keystone”, which the Boston-based songwriter says was inspired by a relationship gone bad.
“I wrote ‘Keystone’ after taking a step back from a complicated relationship I had been in where I felt in a way I had collapsed mentally,” Kendall tells Vanyaland. “The song communicates the emotional ebb and flow I experienced, relating to feeling buried by it. I try to give out a part of me that is vulnerable to my audience, so if they had ever gone through something like it they have something to relate to. I’m definitely not afraid to be brutally honest in my songs. It’s healing in a way.”
The tension in the songs builds, and while the music itself is bountiful, the source material reflects Kendall’s loneliness. “I really wanted the sounds of the track to portray the sweeping sounds of wind and grass in that sort of barren place I found myself emotionally,” she adds. “Soft strings represented that well for me while the aggressive vocals and melody in the chorus represent a stark contrast. I tried a different approach to the chorus than what I have done before, being quite repetitive with the lyrics and building up into a bit of an explosion of emotion.”
“Keystone” is the first single off Kendall’s upcoming EP, and is officially out today via Soundcloud, iTunes, Spotify, and Google Play. Stream it below.