It’s been a hot minute since we last caught up with Barleaux, the New York State artist and one-time Bostonian who has spent the past several years releasing a cascade of confessional alt-pop that playfully struts a line between bittersweet and euphoric. Barleaux’s music has always captured the spirit of modern life and all its bruises and triumphs, and today (August 28) returns with a heart-healed single in “Fresh Water.”
The slick post-disco R&B-tinged track was written during quarantine in Barleaux’s home studio, and produced and mixed by Graham Stone (VHS Collection, Chelsea Cutler). It’s the follow-up to May’s sparking “Afterglow,” and confronts the end of a relationship that ends with emotional maturity rather than hurtful confrontation.
“[I] wrote this song about coming to terms with when a relationship is ending and both partners are aware of it,” Barleaux tells Vanyaland. “The metaphor for tears in the chorus symbolizes not having a ‘saltiness’ towards the other person, but rather a mutual respect. We’re all human, and no one is perfect. Just because you’re not right for each other doesn’t mean it’s anyone’s fault things didn’t work out.”
Take a dip into Barleaux’s “Fresh Water” pond below.