Electro-pop is serving us a heaping plate of sunshine and rainbows with this metallic and pastel covered video for ‘Sanctuary by Victoria Victoria.
I love the softness that comes with ‘Sanctuary’. Non-abrasive and floaty to listen to this song beautifully shifts away from the sometimes tinny or super commercialized side of electro-pop. This trio really is here to give you a feel-good, airy, sound. The song feels vibrant and full of life while hitting on some more nostalgic vibes which just makes the whole piece seem incredibly personal.
“Alone in her apartment one afternoon, Elliot felt the walls closing in on her and the mental pressure became too much. So, she broke out into a dance to purge her toxic headspace. “I had adopted the ritual of crazy-dancing every day when I was dealing heavily with panic attacks, and it helped,” she says. The song then was born out of both pain and redemption. “I wrote it on a day that I was feeling particularly victimized by my own self-hatred and anxiety and was inspired by my feelings of powerlessness. This song was an attempt at changing my language surrounding self-hatred and anxiety. I’m personifying self-hatred and ‘putting it in its place,’ so to speak.”
The accompanying visual (written and directed by Beth Fletcher) taps into “a sense of pride” that emerged like a monarch butterfly from slumber. “The whole idea of the video, and the song, is that we are not the enemy. Self-hatred is the enemy,” she says. “I really just want people watching to feel power in situations where they once felt they were a victim of hatred.”
Elliot began performing consistently in various bands in her early 20s. Victoria Victoria is now her main focus, who released their debut album Coastal Beast in 2016. Put simply, the impressive debut allowed her to find her footing in an ever-slippery industry. “It was one of the first times that I really began to believe that I was capable of having good ideas and that what I had to bring to the table was valuable,” she says. “I really learned to trust myself, and to trust the people I was creating with. Collaboration can be difficult, but it brings out the best in us, and it brings out the best in my music.” That was just the beginning.
2018 saw the release of two singles and videos, “Body Body” and “Roller Blades,” both sticky with synths, beats and Elliot’s signature timbre. You could say her creative drive hit a hefty payload. She soon began pouring herself into new work, honing her songwriting and imagining stunning, more ambitious visuals. Meanwhile, she also chipped away at other expressive outlets like painting and drawing and outside collaborations, including with friend and musician Michael Anderson for a jazz-soul-classical endeavor.
Now, armed with “Sanctuary,” Elliot rises victorious and more than ready to shoulder impending stardom. “I know better than to let you in / This is holy ground,” she sings, a synthy lullaby to herself. Her work is an exemplary display of fine-tuned attention to emotional detail, often exposing every raw nerve, and the pop giants of today would be wise to take notes. Victoria Victoria is a force to be reckoned with.”
victoriavictoria.org
open.spotify.com/artist/7HCC7kE2A7UW1IGOzajebg
youtube.com/channel/UCL-zkPBoS8M6M3yh5TDRMYw/featured
victoriavictoria.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/thevictoriavictoria
instagram.com/victoriavictoriamusic
Review by Hannah Schneider
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